We Are Phantoms
by Illusory Phantom
Summary: AU After the events of 'Phantom Planet', Danny, his family and his friends find themselves facing a new yet familiar villain who is hellbent on taking over where Vlad Masters left off. Who is this new villain, and what is he up too? New faces and old faces alike will clash in this new adventure. Will it all end well for Danny and his friends?
1. Phantoms Thrice

_Chapter One: Phantom Thrice_

DF

_"It's totally not my fault_," I whined as I held my arm gingerly. _"You can't seriously blame me for the fact that a new ghost has taken that crazed up fruit loop's place!"_

I looked to my Gothic girlfriend, Samantha 'Sam' Manson, with a pleading expression on my face. She merely flicked her black locks from her face to reveal her glaring eyes. I winced beneath her gaze as my own floppy black hair overshadowed my eyes as I stared down at my red and white sneakers. After a few moments I could hear her sigh which caused me to look up in her direction. Her combat boots were double tied so that the laces wouldn't come undone. They were all black, laces included, and they concealed her purple leggings. Continuing upward she wore a black plaid skirt fused with purple thread. Keep heading upward and you'd see her naval. Her shirt was short and black with a purple oval in the middle. Lastly, as my gaze continues to ascend, I get to her face. Her purple eyeliner and lip stick bringing out her features, especially since she's pale enough to be the daughter of Dracula. Her normally smiling face was in a frown, and her normally pony-tailed hair was currently flowing down her back, something that she blamed on me at the moment as well.

_"Danny, listen,"_ she started before her gaze left me for a moment. I turned in her direction and see my best friend, the Mayor of Amity Park, running towards me.

He too, was wearing a frown on his face, but I wasn't sure if it was because he was wearing an all-black tuxedo instead of his usual red beret, yellow shirt, green cargo pants, and brown boots; if it was because he lost his glasses which was why he was currently wearing his backup, or if it was because of the same reason that Sam was angry.

I waved to my African American best friend, Tucker Foaly, but he merely gave me a death glare and waved to Sam. Clearly, I was going to have a long day.

_"It's like Super Hero-ing 101. If Someone as evil as Vlad were to be usurped, then someone else was going to take his place,"_ stated Sam, finishing what she had started to say before our friend showed up.

I merely shake my head slightly before turning to Tucker who wasn't even looking at me. It was then that I began to reflect on past events. All this started when I was fourteen. My parents had been working on this invention for who knows how long, and then finally they finished it. It was supposed to be a portal into a zone for ghosts. We called this zone the 'Ghost Zone'. Clever name, isn't it? Anyway, this Ghost Portal to the Ghost Zone didn't exactly work and so they just sort of gave up. I had told my best friends about it, and we all decided that we should check it out. Of course I had been the one convinced to go into the portal and look around. When I did, I accidentally flipped a switch. The switch changed my molecular structure…embedded my DNA with ectoplasm which caused me to develop ghostly abilities or powers. In other words, I'm half a human, half a ghost. I'm a Halfa in other words. More clever word play, right? With these ghost powers, I decided to protect my home town of Amity Park from the ghosts who now managed to get through the portal, now that it works.

Now, this Vlad guy that Sam decided to mention is…er…was a Halfa. He got his ghost powers in a Ghost Portal accident too, twenty years before mine I think. He was college buddies with my parents. They were building a Proto-Portal which is just a fancy way of saying Prototype Ghost Portal, and something happened involving soda and Ecto Acne, and revenge and blah blah blah. Vlad's a bad guy who wants…wanted to marry my mom, kill my dad and take me as a son.

Anyway, there was this huge asteroid which we dubbed the Disasteroid, that was hurtling towards Earth. Vlad had wanted to rule the world and had all the big wig world rulers or whatever they were sign everything over to him. In exchange for those signatures, he promised to stop the Disasteroid. Surprise surprise, the fruit loop couldn't do it. Not only had he revealed his own identity and failed to stop the Disasteroid, but he ruined his own reputation and betrayed the only person who really called him friend. In the end, with the help of almost every ghost in the Ghost Zone, I was able to turn the world intangible so that the Disasteroid could slip right through the planet. The ghosts helped because the Ghost Zone runs parallel with the Living Zone which means if one zone goes, so does the other.

Vlad didn't show his face during this entire time, probably afraid to come back or he's dead. I mean, how long can you stay in Ghost Mode in space? Anyway, it had been at least six months after everything had calmed down and settled, that someone else decided to take Vlad's place. This ghost is coordinated, just like Vlad had been, but it's much more careful. I hadn't even seen this ghost before, and I don't know where it's operating from. That brings us to the here and now. I lean my head to look towards Tucker who was once again sending me a glare. I give an aggravated sigh before shouting to the heavens,

_"HOW IS THIS MY FAULT!?"_

Sam and Tucker both stop walking to look at me, which only causes me to stop as well. Sam is busy swatting the loose strands of hair out of her face, which makes her seem much more feminine than she acts, while Tucker is tugging roughly at the collar of his white shirt which he wore under the suit jacket. They both stand there silently before giving each other a look that I can't quite identify before looking at me.

Sam sighed before saying, _"Danny, you haven't even been trying to figure out who this new ghost is! I get that you have homework and that you're battling other ghosts, but this new ghost is ten times worse than Vlad!"_

Tucker nodded in agreement before pulling a small PDA from his suit pocket. He used the PDA's stylus to poke at the screen. Once he was satisfied, he turned the personal companion towards me and showed me a graph. I blinked a few times before somewhat understanding what I was seeing. I mean, I am horrible at math. I saw the name's Vlad and Noob on the PDA, so I automatically knew what it meant. Vlad's bar was pretty high and it listed some pros and cons on Vlad's side. Some of the pros listed were things like, filthy rich, could afford to rebuild what he accidentally knocked down. Occasionally reimbursed certain places, and accidentally presented openings that Danny could exploit in order to better the small town of Amity Park. Listed under the cons were things such as, Evil Ghost, Evil ghost who's stronger than Danny, Evil ghost who's stronger than Danny that does more damage than he chooses to compensate for, and chases after Danny's mother.

Under the list for the new ghost, or Noob as Tucker decided to call him, were just cons. Some of them included, Knows the true meaning of surprise, does more harm than any ghost he's charted and only in one day.

I groaned and waved my hand at the PDA dramatically before I started walking again, my girlfriend and best friend following beside me.

_"I get it guys, but have you forgotten that I need sleep? I can't go to school, fight ghosts, do homework, and not sleep! I mean, I probably could, but that didn't work so well last time."_

I shake my head at the thought. The last time I went without sleep was something that I didn't want to remember. I had been so busy with detention, homework and makeup assignments that I went a week without sleep. On top of that and the ghost fighting, it was hard to focus. I hadn't wanted to go to sleep either, but then I got my ghostly behind handed to me by the Box Ghost. I had said 'Never Again' after that, and my friends seemed to agree, despite the teasing I endure.

For a moment the three of us walk in silence, not really knowing what more to say. I looked down at my clothes, and for the first time I realize just how shoddy my appearance was. My normally white T-Shirt with a red oval in the middle was tattered on the side and the front was caked with dirt. My jeans were torn at the knees, most likely from when I had skidded on the concrete. I remembered swearing that I would wear knee pads in a fight after that, especially if I go from ghost to human in a fight. My white and red sneakers weren't really that bad, not unless you counted the dirty shoelaces which were untied. I was too lazy to tie them, and now my arm just really hurt.

I had been heading home from school with Sam by my side when this ghost came out of nowhere and attacked us. Of course my Ghost Sense, a blue mist that comes from my mouth whenever a ghost is near, went off. Even so, it can't exactly pin point where the ghost was coming from, so it was slightly easy for it to blind side me, since it was invisible. I had taken a few hits before I realized that there was pattern to the attack. Once I figured out a plan of action, Sam and I attacked back, me with my ghost powers and her with the Fenton Pistol. The Fenton Pistols are like pistols, but instead bullets, they shoot ectoplasm that stuns a specter. This specter, had been a lot more trouble, but retreated anyway, but not after it roughed us up.

A few more moments and the three of us stop automatically, right outside of the Fenton Works building which is where I live. Before I can even open the door, it swings back to allow my friends and I passage. Once inside I see my older sister Jasmine 'Jazz' Fenton. Something about the way she was smiling had me on edge, but I walked in anyway with my friends following behind me. I make my way to the family room only to be met with something I didn't expect.

_"Danielle?" _I asked curiously, a grin slowly tugging at my face.

The female who had been sitting on the couch, turned her head in my direction and grinned. It was creepy to say the least.

_"Danny!"_ she yelled in delight before she hopped to her feet.

My grin only grew wider when I realized how tall she had become. I was caught off guard when she pulled me into an embrace. I was still off guard when she pulled away, but my smile was still plastered on my face.

"I haven't seen you since the whole asteroid thing. Is everything alright?"

I asked her as I sat down on the couch.

She followed me there as well, but she didn't sit down.

She was looking around nervously. I looked around as well, noticing that Tucker had decided to go into the kitchen and Sam had gone with my sister, most likely to get a hair band. I turned back to examine the girl before me. I was….really surprised.

You see, Danielle is a clone; My clone. That makes her a Halfa as well. She was cloned by that fruit loop, Vlad, and was sent after me because Vlad needed a sample of my post transformation DNA in order to complete this other clone of me which was like…my exact copy. She had been masquerading as my 'cousin' in order to get the DNA or to just bring me back to Vlad. She had been unstable at the time, and Vlad had pretty much told her 'If you get what I need, I'll save you'. Once Danielle realized that it was a lie, she helped me out of there. Of course it was only after I teed Vlad off by accidentally destroying my copy. It was scary watching myself melt. In the end, I really did consider Danielle as a cousin or a sister, and not just some evil clone that my arch nemesis cooked up in a test tube or whatever.

Anyway, Danielle had run away from Vlad after that, but she came back and asked for help because she was still unstable. How she had survived before, I don't even, but I knew that I had to help her. My dad had been working on an invention that was supposed to take a ghost powers away or something, but it only made them stronger. I knew I had to help her, so I made up my mind to use that invention on her. It would have been easy if it hadn't been for Valerie Grey, a girl that I liked, but at the same time I was annoyed with because she was a ghost hunter with this unnatural ability to see just the worst in a ghost. She ended up taking Danielle to Vlad where he almost melted her down. I was able to convince Valerie to help me save Danielle just in time though. All three of us ended up fighting Vlad, in his ghost form, and came to an understanding. Once it was all over, Danielle thanked us and then skipped town again.

The last time I saw her was when she was helping us turn the entire planet intangible. A few people took notice of how similar we looked. I ended up flagging Dani down and explaining her to my parents. However you picture that encounter, chances are you're right. They were appalled that Vlad had done such a thing. They also wanted to do their own experiments, but in the end they just couldn't do it or be angry with her. It wasn't her fault that she had been brought into the world in such a way. Not only that, but she looked so much like me that my mom didn't mind. In fact, I get the feeling my mom likes Dani as a daughter more so than a niece. She always makes Dani feel welcome. Now, dad on the other hand…She was a product of Vlad's betrayal, and despite how clueless my dad can be, he's a smart individual and he's very wary of Dani. Still, he tries his hardest, and I can tell he's slowly starting to accept her. Sadly though, she never stays in Amity Park for too long. She roams the world helping people, or at least she did until now.

Now, here she was, about a head shorter than I was. Her bright blue eyes that were the spitting image of my own seemed to take in everything despite being somewhat covered by her own rendition of my flopping black bangs. She had a ponytail though cascading down her back. It had obviously gotten longer. I looked at her some more, taking in how her blue hooded shirt was dirty in certain placers, and her red shorts were torn. I could also make out healing bruises on her legs. My eyes widened slightly and I blurted out without thinking, something which my friends constantly reminded me to work on,

_"Dani, what happened to you?"_

Danielle, or Dani as we called her, looked at me and then quickly smiled. She shook her head before her attention went back to the doorway. I turned once again to see that both Sam and Jazz had returned. Sam had her hair in the ponytail that she adored so much, while my older sister just went into the kitchen. Her black short sleeved shirt had a loose string attached, and her jeans were somewhat faded. The light blue ribbon that she usually wore in her hair was nowhere to be seen today.

I turned back to Dani and motioned for her to sit next to me, which she did without really looking. She sat quietly for a few moments before she dared to speak.

_"I've seen him, Danny. I've seen the new ghost."_

Whatever I was going to say instantly got caught in my throat. She had seen the new ghost? Talk about a coincidence, right? It was a male too, apparently.

_"You-you have?" _I asked, unsure if she was being serious or not.

The female version of myself nodded sadly before rubbing at her wrists. I didn't know if she was rubbing them because she was nervous or if it was because they hurt. Either way, I didn't like how she was acting. Usually Dani was cocky and…well…just like me. Now she seemed scared and almost fragile. There were so many questions roaming around in my head, and yet I couldn't ask them. Something was preventing me from doing so, but I wasn't sure what. I admit that it could have been excitement. A lot of the other more frequent ghost that I used to battle with didn't show up as much if at all, and the newer ones didn't talk much. It took the fun out of my witty bantering. Vlad was exceptional when it came to witty banter, and he could usually dish it back when I didn't play the 'My mommy doesn't love you back' card.

I was so deep in thought that I hadn't noticed that Dani had been shaking. When I did, I wrapped my uninjured arm around her. It was…an awkward feel, but I figured that I would quickly get over it. Obviously something happened that had shocked her or scared her. I mean, she was literally shaking.

_"Dani?"_ I asked slowly, causing her to look at me.

She didn't respond right away, but she knew what I was trying to ask her. She looked down at the palms of her hands before clenching them into fists. Here was the Dani that I knew. It took her a moment, but when she finally looked at me again, that fear was gone; replaced with determination that burned brighter than a supernova.

_"Yeah, I've seen him,"_ she confirmed.

Her tone was much more solid than it was before. She was still shaking, but I doubt it was from fear. I waited, unsure of what I was about to hear. When she spoke again, her eyes seemed to flash from their normal blue hue to a glowing emerald green.

_"I was in Wisconsin, checking out fa—I mean Vlad's old mansion, when this ghost came out of nowhere. At first, I thought he was Vlad, but he was wearing this white cloak with a hood. The hood was up and it covered most of his face. I didn't think he could see me like that, but I was wrong. He started…he started laughing, and then he said, 'Hello Big Sis'."_

I could feel my brain turning to mush. I'd never seen or heard about a ghost like that, and why would this ghost call Dani 'Big Sis'? Even more questions began to race around my head, and it was starting to get crowded. Dani was still talking, and from the sound my older sister made, I could tell that I missed something.

_"What?" _I asked without thinking.

I hadn't noticed that Sam and Tucker had also been present, and both of them were shooting me these looks. Dani just smiled at me before repeating herself.

_"I said, Danny, that I chased him around the mansion until he managed to corner me in the lab."_

I couldn't help it. I gasped. I knew that Dani didn't like the lab. I mean, if you were about to be melted down into nonexistence, you wouldn't like it either.

_"What happened after that?"_ inquired Tucker, his eyes locked on with Dani's. Dani took a deep breath and continued.

_"I held my breath, stuck out my hands and fired. I wasn't about to let some stupid lab incapacitate me! I caught the other ghost by surprise and managed to knock his hood off. I…sort of wished that I hadn't…" _

Dani trailed off and began to look around the room once more. I couldn't understand what exactly she was looking for though. She was staring at one part of the wall that held a picture there at one point, but it was gone now_._

_"Why do you wish you hadn't?"_ asked my older sister. Dani looked towards Jazz and clenched her fists tightly. She was trying to hide her fear.

_"He got angry. He glared at me with red eyes, then shot this red ecto-blast at me. It hurt so much, and he just wouldn't stop firing. I flew away as fast as I could."_

She sighed and then turned back to me.

_"I don't think that Vlad's cloning days ended. I think whoever that is was another clone. He had white hair like ours after all."_

The room got eerily quiet at that. I swear I could hear my heart beating so loud that it would cause an avalanche, ya know, it there was enough snow to cause one. I rubbed the back of my neck which I do when I'm nervous, then closed my eyes to think.

_"Vlad hasn't made his way back to Earth, and I doubt he's gonna try unless he's really desperate. If he had made another clone, it would have to have been before the whole Disasteroid crisis, but he never figured out how to stabilize the clones. That means, if this were a clone, it would have…"_

I trailed off, not wanting to say more. I sometimes forget that Dani was…is a clone. She gives me a thoughtful look, and for a moment I find it hard to maintain eye contact. She catches on and then shakes her head like I'm an idiot.

_"Idiot,"_ she giggled before putting on a serious front.

_"I was thinking the same thing, but what if there was some residue of whatever you used on me left over? He could have figured out some way to separate the ectoplasm and that stuff, study and recreate enough of it to stabilize one last clone, don't you think?"_

Tucker was tapping away at his PDA. I could just imagine all the equations that he was going through at the moment, and that mental image made my head hurt. I groaned and rested my head in my hands. Sam, on the other hand, was humming. Clearly she was thinking as well. A few more clicks of Tucker's PDA, and then a slight vibration from the couch made me look up. Tucker was looking towards Dani and I with a grim expression.

He said, _"It's very possible for that to happen. It's also possible that Vlad managed to keep some of Danny's DNA during that battle. It would also explain why it called Dani its big sister. Dani would have been created before this one."_

Sam nudged Tucker, probably trying to get him to be a little more sensitive when it came to Dani. Dani didn't seem to mind it, however. She was thinking about this just like the rest of us. I leaned my head back against the couch and sighed. I had a question too.

_"Okay, but how do we know this is the same ghost that's been causing trouble. I mean, Dani and the other clones had been acting on Vlad's orders, right? There's currently no Vlad as far as we know. Not only that, let's say that this clone has been stabilized…why has he just now shown himself? Why not come out sooner to help Vlad? Why now?"_

For a moment no-one could answer my question, but I could see that my sister was thinking. She was either going to try to psychoanalyze a clone or ghost or whatever that she had never seen before, or she was going to add more questions to the pot. Sam had stopped her humming and was now frowning angrily at the television. Tucker was staring at the screen of his PDA while Dani was staring at the ceiling. I sighed. I hadn't expected the question to be that hard. That was when Dani answered, but she spoke low enough for her response to barely be heard.

_"A cryogenic containment unit…"_

All eyes, at least the eyes that belonged to the person that heard, were on Dani. Dani looked up, probably stunned that she had said something out loud. She looked at me before rolling her eyes and closing them. Apparently she knew something about Vlad that I didn't.

_"Dani" _I said firmly. She opened her eyes, gave me this look of annoyance and spoke.

_"I would occasionally go to Vlad's place in Colorado to recuperate. He'd be so busy trying to find ways to sway you and your mom over to his side that he didn't bother with the place anymore. Of course, it was filled with things to keep out people or animals, but being half ghost made it easy to get in. I'd deactivate the traps, stay for a while and roam around, just to see what sort of things I could mess with. Well, I found these plans for a Cryogenic Unit. They were just a bunch of theories…"_

_"You read them?"_ interrupted Tucker. Dani nodded her head and then continued.

_"When I'm usually recuperating I tend to stay inside. I'd somewhat clean the place up so I wouldn't have to deal with the dirt and grime that started to cake up. That was when I actually decided that I should probably look through some of Vlad's things. That was when I found the notes. Since this was Vlad's stuff and I knew what he was capable of, I wanted to be ready for anything. So yeah, I read them. I gave myself a headache too. I just read what I could understand, like his theories and stuff. He wanted to use the unit to freeze something, but have it set to a timer which would thaw it whenever he desired and without him having to be there. At first, I thought he wanted to freeze himself like in one of those cheesy movies, but maybe this is what he was up too instead!"_

Tucker, Sam, Jazz and I looked at Dani with identical expressions. The female clone of myself looked a bit sheepish, but then she began to frown. She stood from the couch and was about to say something when her voice caught in her throat. At the same time an identical, icy blue haze wafted from both our mouths. I stood to my feet and at the same time Dani and I clenched our fists and narrowed our eyes. Dani then shifted where she stood before hissing, _"It's him! I can tell."_

I looked to my clone, then to my sister, best friend and girlfriend. Each one of them gave an understanding nod while Dani and I shouted, _"I'M GOING GHOST!"_

Immediately after speaking, I began to search deep within myself for a cold spot that triggers my ghostly abilities. It's really like second nature for me to do this, which I sometimes wonder about. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I guess it shouldn't matter. Anyway, once I felt that cold spot and tapped into it, my whole body went through a change. An orb of white energy emerged from my torso, then changed into a horizontal ring. The ring then splits in half; one half goes up and changes my body's structure while the other half goes down and does the same.

Once the two rings of light faded away, it left me in its place, only inverted. My black hair was now snow white. My blue eyes become emerald green. My clothes now consisted of a black HAZMAT suit with white gloves, boots, belt, and DP emblem on my chest.

Looking beside me, I see that Dani has gone through the exact same transformation as I. Her hair was still the same as it had been before the transformation, except, like mine, hers is white. Her eyes are also now a vibrant emerald green. The only difference between us is really her suit. The top is a long sleeved shirt that shows off her midriff. Half of her outfit is black while the other half is white. Her pants are also black and white, but the black and white are on opposite sides than the top. Like me she has black boots, but one of her gloves is black and the other is white. The two of us look like we could be identical twins Pre and Post transformation. I guess it makes sense, her being my clone and all.

Now, back to the situation at hand, Dani had said that this was the ghost that she had encountered back in Wisconsin. My question now was why was he here? If this was the ghost that was causing trouble for me and my friends from the safety of another state, then why the heck did he even bother to come to my town? Just as this question left my mind, the figure in the white robe phased through the wall, instantly putting Dani on edge. Something about that just told me that this ghost gave her a much harder time than I was initially thinking.

The robe that this ghost or clone wore was completely covering him. I couldn't see his eyes or his clothes. I couldn't tell anything about this ghost.

The ghost merely hovered above us. From what Dani had been telling us, he could see what we were doing, and was probably waiting on us to make the first move. I relaxed, just a little bit and stared at where I thought his eyes would be. I figured I must have been staring in the right direction since his head shifted ever so slightly in my direction. I was pretty sure that he was watching me. With his attention on me now, Dani was free to make her move. I knew what she was planning without even having to watch her. She had turned intangible and slipped through the floor only to come up behind the intruder. At first, I thought the surprise attack would work, but right when Dani lunged, the other ghost put up a red protective ecto-barrier or ghost shield. Dani bounced back, and the other ghost turned to face her, just a bit. I got into a crouch only to lunge forward. It was a pretty dumb idea considering that the barrier was still up.

The other ghost didn't seem surprised by this. In fact, he seemed to just lack emotion. That was what I thought until I heard him snicker. I hovered backwards a bit, my feet turning into a spectral tail at this point. Dani was hovering on the other side of the ghost, her feet still present; slightly tucked.

_"Certainly this isn't the best that Daniel Phantom, Ghost Zone's greatest warrior, has to offer me? How pathetic."_

And there it was. I frowned. This ghost…clone, what the heck ever, just came into my house, avoided two different attacks and had the nerve to talk smack? Yeah, that was just…wait, did he call me Daniel?

_"Did you just call me Daniel?"_ I asked, unsure of what to make of that.

The only person to call me Daniel while in the middle of a fight was Vlad. The ghost nodded his head. I swear I could see his smile beneath the stupid hood on his head.

_"That is who you are, isn't it? The undistinguished hair, the juvenile ensemble you call a costume…your childish reactions and demeanor. You are, Daniel Phantom."_

I growled at him. The more this guy spoke, the more I wanted to make sure Vlad was still in space.

_"It's __**Danny**__ Phantom, dipstick,"_ I corrected moodily before trying to penetrate his shield with an ecto-blast.

Of course, with his ghost shield up, it was merely absorbed. Dani just narrowed her eyes before trying a blast of her own. Why was his shield so strong?!

_"Daniel and Danielle; Danny and Dani. Clearly Vladimir's creative streak was short lived. How sad."_ the ghost snickered, making both Dani and I shudder.

The ghost lowered himself to the ground with the shield still around him. I couldn't help but growl at him some more. He was just…so **BOLD**.

He just ignored my growls and stood there before saying, _"Tell your friends to put their little thermos away, Daniel. I'm merely here for information."_

At first, I was confused by this, until I realized what he was talking about. My friends had gone to the basement to retrieve a few Fenton Thermoses. The Fentom Thermos is a ghost catching device that sucks up a ghost and…well, it looks like a thermos. I frowned before turning to my friends and family member, who had no doubt **JUST** came from the basement. I made a 'stand down' motion with my hand before turning back to the ghost who had pretty much dominated my living room.

_"First, I want some answers. You're the ghost that's been tearing up my hometown and making me look like a completely useless wimp, aren't you?"_

I knew after I asked that question that I should have probably phrased it better, but it was too late to do so and I wasn't thinking.

_"Firstly, Daniel, I am the ghost who's been giving the orders to cause trouble here. I try not to get my hands too messy. Secondly, I don't believe you need any help  
making yourself look like a useless wimp. You're doing exceptionally well on your own."_

I scowled at the ghost and my hand began to glow an emerald green color. He merely chuckled and turned to Dani. I swear I saw his eyes flash red. I stepped between the two of them and looked at the other ghost.

_"Now what is it that you want to know?"_ I asked, my hand started to glow a very vibrant and very deadly green.

The ghost looked at me, at least I thought he did, and he laughed.

_"Oh, did you think that I was going to ask you a question and speak with you in a civil matter to get the information that I sought? Silly boy, there is more than one way to get information. Observing ones foe in their natural habitat, for starters, is a good way to gain information. Sadly though, the ghosts that I had sent came back to me with their spectral tails between their legs. After disposing of those failures I realized that the only way I was going to get any information on you that hadn't been retrieved prior to my reign was to come and scope you out myself. Clearly you're no real threat to me."_

I shot off a blast at the ghost's shield, and I swear I saw the darn thing waver. Apparently I wasn't the only one who noticed. The ghost in front of me did as well, and did something unexpected. He lowered his shield. I was poised to attack, but then stopped when the other male raised both his hands to his hood.

_"You deserve a reward for nearly getting through my shield, Daniel."_

Just like that, he pulled back his hood. Jazz and I both gasped, Dani looked confused, and Sam and Tucker didn't really seem to understand.

The male ghost let the hood fall against his back as he cocked his head to the side.

_"Before you say something entirely stupid, Daniel, you may call me Alucard."_

I bit my lower lip. This was, totally unexpected. Jazz and I recognized him instantly mainly because of his hair. His hair was a jet black with a grey streak going through the middle and was tied in a ponytail. While in the ponytail, it was just about at shoulder's length. His eyes were blue, but they weren't as vibrant as my own. They were more along the lines of a light navy blue sort. This guy wasn't my clone at all. I recognized his face immediately. I'd seen it plenty of times in my parents's college yearbook. This clone was a young Vlad Masters.

_"Alucard, huh?"_ I repeated with a frown.

I was confused so my usual quips didn't seem to be coming fast enough. This clone had caused my ghost sense to go off, and yet he wasn't in his ghost form, at least I don't think that he was. I mentally shook my head at the thought before letting loose another beam. Just like the Vlad that I was used to, this Vlad or Alucard made a much smaller, rectangular shield to block each of my blasts. Dani, who wasn't aware of who this clone really was, also began to fire pot shots at the ghost. He also managed to deflect those as well, making my clone and I very annoyed. It was then that the Alucard decided to return fire. I was hit, hard with a red blast of energy. Vlad's energy was usually magenta, not ruby red. I don't know why I thought of that, but I did.

I had gone intangible the moment I was hit because I knew that was going to go flying. I just didn't know how far. When I opened my eyes, I was outside, and Dani was lying on her back next to me. Apparently he had manage to hit us both, and he was now hovering through the walls.

_"Daniel, Daniel, Daniel, how very foolish of you to use up my patience like that. I was planning on letting you live to see the destruction of the town by your own hands, but now you can forget it."_

I looked at Vlad's clone, and was instantly confused.

_"That made no sense to me."_ I said truthfully, yet with sarcasm.

Vlad's clone…er, Al, just scoffed at me before reaching under his robe. A few seconds later, he pulled out a Fenton Thermos. I rolled my eyes before snorting.

_"You're going to what, put Dani and me inside that thing? Gimme a break."_

I had no idea how wrong I was, but I did know I was wrong. That wicked smile that was on Al's face said so. I didn't understand. Was that thermos some sort of upgrade of the ones that my parents made? Could it effectively rip Dani and I up molecule by molecule? I began to study the thermos a little more. There were a few scratches here and there, and there was even a smidge of mud dried up on the side. I really, really didn't understand. Then, just like that, everything clicked into place. From what Alucard had said about the town's destruction at my hands, and from the appearance of the thermos, I realized what was happening.

_"No, don't open that thermos!"_ I yelled, knowing that there was nothing I could do.

He had already been unscrewing the lid. I lunged forward, but the thermos had been opened. The power that was released from the thermos was enough to push me back and then to the ground. I landed next to Dani who was still pretty much out of it. I then raised my head to watch as a blue and white haze wafted from the thermos, followed by maniacal laughing. I cringed and instantly threw up a ghost shield of my own. The shield was emerald in color, and it was big enough to protect Dani and I from the dust and dirt that was being kicked up. Not only that, but…that laughter. I knew that laugh. I feared that laugh. It was the laughter from the thing that haunted my nightmares. I sat there, frozen to the spot, watching as the mist began to take form.

_"No,"_ I breathed, no longer watching Alucard.

The laughter, for some reason, stopped abruptly, and I could hear struggling. I just sat there and watched, not even bothering to watch Alucard who was doing something to the mist.

Once the form took finally took on its actual form, I thought I was going to die from lack of oxygen. There, standing before us was the fusion of my future ghost half and Vlad's future ghost half, Dark Phantom. He wore a combination of my costume with Vlad's cape. The arms of the costume were white and he had black gloves. His boots were still white like mine. There was also the DP emblem on his chest. His eyes were a sinister red color that seemed to make my skin burn. His hair was white, and was wafting around his head like flames on a match, yet there was ponytail in the back and he had a goatee, most likely from Vlad. His skin tone was a light, almost aquamarine color, and his ears were slightly pointed.

If it hadn't been for the simple fact that Dark Phantom was just standing there, I probably wouldn't have found my composure in time to stand up and pick up Dani. Why was Dark Phantom just standing there? What did I miss? Why wasn't he ranting or gloating? Why wasn't he going on a rampage? Isn't that what normal villains did when they were set free? No, better question…what the heck was he still doing in existence?!

TBC


	2. A Shove In What Direction?

_Chapter Two: A Shove in What Direction?_

****DF****

Alucard walked beside Dark Phantom and leaned up against his shoulder like the two of them were old friends. I somewhat flinched. Al obviously had a death wish. When Dark Phantom didn't move though, my eyes grew wide. Alucard merely smiled.

_"You didn't think I'd release a ghost this powerful without a way to control him, did you Daniel?"_

I couldn't help it. I shook my head, still in too much shock to actually comprehend what I was seeing. Alucard seemed to like my awestruck state, and he stared at me for at least five seconds before snapping his fingers.

In that instant, I knew three things happened; Dark Phantom lunged at me, I screamed so loud that I accidentally let loose a Ghostly Wail, and Dani finally came around. Dani wriggled from my grasped and then hovered next to me. She seemed concerned, but that was probably because I was still screaming a tad bit longer than necessary. Dark Phantom and Alucard had been knocked backwards by my most powerful attack, and they both seemed disoriented. That was good. It was really good. As fast as I could I took Dani's hand and flew into the Op's Center. The Op's Center is the center of certain ghost related operations and is located on the roof of my house. Once Dani and I were up there, I instructed her to revert back to human. She questioned me, but I didn't try to waste time and explain. I changed back from Phantom to Fenton, and pressed a switch on the Op's Center which did two things. It sent out a code red across Amity Park, something that I suggested, and it put up a protective Ghost Shield around my house. There was no way Dark Phantom was getting in, I hoped, and there was no way I was going to let Vlad…I mean, Alucard inside…

Dani, who was still hovering beside me in her ghost mode shrieked, which caused me to turn around. Some of the weapons that were hidden in the wall had darted out from their hiding spots and had taken aim.

_"Dani, change back!"_ I instructed again.

This time around, she listened and the weapons returned to their respective hiding places. She gave a relieved sigh before I took her hand and phased us both through the floor and into the living room.

Once the two of us reached the living room, we saw Sam, Tucker and Jazz looking out the window with concern in their eyes. I stepped forward, making sure my feet hit the floor hard so that I wouldn't scare my friends and sister. They turned to us, looking startled, but then calmed down.

_"Danny, what's going on?!" _asked Jazz and Sam together.

I flopped down on the couch and rubbed my temples slowly. Dani just stood beside me and waited as well. This was something that I hadn't told my family about. I hadn't revealed Dark Phantom to anyone although they had all been there. Of course, I knew that their minds had been wiped, and that was what I had wanted. Now I know I have to tell them the truth, otherwise they'd do something stupid.

_"Danny?"_ I heard my sister ask.

I looked directly at her, uncertainty in my eyes. If I were to tell her, would she be smart enough to know that trying to give my ghostly future self a session in psychiatry was a no no? Well, I had to take my chances. Still, I didn't want to tell them about him just yet, so I was going to explain Alucard.

_"Well,"_ I started before rubbing the back of my neck nervously, _"Alucard isn't my clone. He's Vlad's clone."_

Jazz didn't say anything. She had already known. Tucker, Sam and Dani were the ones who were surprised. I then began to search around for this picture that used to be on the wall in the place that Dani had been staring at. I think she had known, but wanted to confirm it. Now that it was confirmed, it was still a shock, but she seemed to get over it much faster than Sam and Tucker.

_"Are you serious, Danny?"_ asked Tucker while shaking his head.

_"It doesn't look like Vlad."_

I only sigh and then give a triumphant 'ah ha' before pulling out my parents yearbook. I walk back over to the group and sit on the couch while flipping to the page that I was looking for. I then held the yearbook out and looked at everyone in the room.

_"See anything familiar?" _ I asked, not showing them what I was talking about.

Tucker, Sam and Dani began to search the pictures. I knew when they had found it, because Sam grew paler than normal and Tucker shook his head.

_"Whoa,"_ said Tucker before scratching his scalp.

_"The only difference is that in this picture he has a mullet._"

I give a weak smile before all eyes instantly went to the front door. It had opened and slammed so fast, that the only reason I knew I wasn't the only one who heard it was because everyone was still staring in that direction. There standing in the doorway were my parents Madeline 'Maddie' Fenton and Jack Fenton. Maddie, my mom, was wearing her blue HAZMAT suit with a hood over her head and red goggles over her eyes. She was pretty thin, but that only made her quick and nimble. She was a black belt and an excellent ghost hunter with accurate aim. There was a tear in her suit, but other than that, she seemed perfectly fine.

Then there was my dad, Jack Fenton. He was large and in an orange HAZMAT suit with no hood. His night blue eyes seemed to scan the area. His black hair with white streaks was somewhat out of sorts, and I was pretty sure I knew why. They had encountered the ghosts that were loitering outside of the house. I got up from my spot and ran over to my parents, and so did Jazz.

_"Mom! Dad! You guys alright?"_

My mother nodded while my father somewhat shook his head.

_"I just saw Vladdy!"_ he stated.

I wasn't sure if I heard sadness, fear or anger in his voice. It may have been all three.

_"No dad, you saw his clone,"_ corrected my sister.

My mom shook her head and sighed. Seeing that version of Vlad must have brought back memories of their college days or something.

_"He's calling himself Alucard now,"_ said Dani, almost timidly.

She tended to speak shyly around my father. My mother looked up and saw her. She smiled warmly at Dani before heading over to her to give her a hug. Yeah, like I said, my mom treats Dani like she's part of the family. My dad took a step forward, but didn't head towards Dani.

_"What about that other ghost?"_ he asked. _"That ghost had the same emblem on his chest that you two have, but we knew he wasn't our Danny. He was listening to Vlad…Alucard…whatever!"_

I cringed. I knew that I did. He just had to get a look at the stupid future ghost, didn't he? All eyes were now on me, including Dani's.

_"He's not another clone, is he?"_ asked Dani who seemed a little annoyed and hurt at the question.

I knew that Dani had wanted Vlad to accept her as his daughter, and I knew that it hurt when Vlad betrayed her. That hurt occasionally came to the surface from time to time whether she was angry or scared. I quickly shook my head to lay her suspicions to rest.

_"Trust me when I say that if he was a clone, he would have be destabilized instead of trapped in a thermos."_

I walked back towards the couch and once again flopped down on it. I groaned at the fact that I would have to relive this story again. If I was going to tell it, I was going to have to tell it right and leave nothing out. I didn't want to be asked about it later.

Everyone began to draw closer to me, and I began to take careful breaths. I knew that my breathing had started to pick up. It was due to fear and the fact that I was being closed in on. I was feeling claustrophobic. I put up my hand to keep my family and friends from advancing, then let out a huge sigh.

_"Remember the C.A.T.s? Well, sometime during the week prior, I had been confronted by a ghost named Box Lunch. She was the daughter of the Lunch Lady and the Box Ghost."_

_"Ewww!"_ groaned Sam and Tucker together while shaking their heads. I chuckled, glad for any small distraction, but then I continued.

_"We ended up fighting, and she knocked me through Lancer's suitcase that he was keeping the answers to the test in; the answers got stuck to my back and I hadn't noticed just yet. What I had noticed was this medallion that said CW on it. It was giving off this ghostly vibe."_ I paused and waited for the others to catch on.

When there were no questions, I decided to go on. I couldn't keep stalling after all.

_"After that, I ran into another ghost…er, another two ghosts fused together."_

_"What?" _ asked Tucker, who I'm pretty sure thought that he had heard wrong.

_"Skultech 9 point 9. Fusion of Skulker and Technus."_

_"Is that an 'ew' or a 'yikes'? _ asked Tucker which only caused me to laugh out loud. He had said the exact same thing before.

_"Definitely a yikes,"_ I replied as I shook my head, and then continued with my story.

_"After fighting those two…um…that…anyway, I got caught by it and needed your help Sam. Tucker. You tried to pry off this clamp that it caught me with, but the medallion it had been wearing fell off and transported us into this huge clock tower dimension thing. That was where we met this ghost named Clockwork. At first, we didn't trust him 'cause he had been trying to kill me, at least that was what I thought. Anyway, with nowhere to run, I took us to the future."_

_"Okay, wait a minute. How come we don't remember this?"_ asked Sam with a frown on her face.

_"Memory wipe most likely,"_ answered Tucker.

_"Then why does Danny remember?"_ questioned Dani.

_"Because I'm supposed to remember," _I answered with an annoyed tone.

I wasn't annoyed with the questions since I had been expecting them. I was more annoyed with the fact that I knew that I 'had' to remember. I needed to remember so that I would never turn down that path to darkness. I would never turn into….into that thing!

_"Anyway,_" I continued, _"We went into the future and saw all this destruction. We learned from Valerie Grey, who's still a ghost hunter, that in this future Sam, Tucker, Mom, Dad, Jazz, Lancer and a few other people were dead thanks to an explosion at the Nasty Burger. After learning that, the evil ghost who's right outside shows up. Come to find out, that evil ghost is ME! At least, half me."_

The room got scary quiet, and I didn't want to continue, but I knew I had too.

_"The evil me or whatever wanted to make sure that his timeline continued to exist, so he tried to kill Sam and Tucker, and he almost succeeded had it not been for your escape act. I don't know which one of you it was, but whoever it was realized that by removing the medallion that we took from Clockwork, you'd be snapped back into your correct time. Before I could take mine off, my evil-self grabbed it and shoved it inside me. Ya know, after he roughed me up a little._

_ He then created his own portal to the Ghost Zone and chucked me inside. There I was met with some seriously angry ghosts. Apparently I had done some bad things when learning to use my Ghostly Wail in that time frame. Johnny was in a wheel chair, Ember's vocal cords were shot and she had put on a few…hundred pounds, things like that. So, they beat me up. Before they could do away with me permanently though, I managed to use my Ghostly Wail for the first time, but since I couldn't control it, it drained me of all my energy. On the bright side, the other ghosts couldn't get to me because they were completely out of it. Bad news was, I had no idea where to go. Luckily for me, Jazz had thrown the Boo-oomerang into the Ghost Portal with a note attached, telling me to head for Vlad's place. How it reached me in the future, I'm not sure._

_Anyway I managed to traverse the Ghost Zone until I came to the Plasmius Portal. It was easy to spot considering that there was this giant floating football directly in front of it."_

My dad snickered at the thought. Everyone knew that Vlad was a big Green Bay Packers fanatic. My dad then became serious once again, but I could see the distant look that was there. Vlad had really hurt him. I somewhat froze up, not knowing if I wanted my dad present to hear the rest, but I continued anyway. He deserved to know everything, just like everyone else who was present and accounted for.

_"Once I kicked the football out of the way, I exited the Ghost Zone and found myself in Vlad's lab. The place looked totally trashed so I was sort of confused. I didn't know if I would find Vlad there or not. I took a step forward, and heard a voice speaking to me. He had asked if I was there to kick a defenseless old man while he was down."_

Scoffing could be heard, and I couldn't tell if it was from my friends, my parents or if it had been myself. Either way I knew that I had to continue quickly if I ever wanted to get through with this story.

_"Vlad had been sitting in a chair facing his computer monitor. When he turned to face me, I could clearly understand why he had said what he did. He looked older than I knew he was, and his appearance was like that of an upper class homeless man. He didn't seem too happy to see me, and considering the circumstances, I couldn't blame him. _

_After talking with Vlad for a few minutes, he began to tell me how all of that timeline came to be. Apparently everyone's death had been so hard on me that I wanted to get away from everything so I sought him out because I knew he was the only person who could help and understand me."_

There was a loud gasp from everyone in the room, but I just went on with my story.

_"Apparently I wanted all the pain to go away. It was a numbing pain, he had said, so he used these Ghost Gauntlets to rip out my ghost half. That's when something went wrong. My ghost half emerge and then lunged for Vlad, tearing out Vlad's ghost half as well. Somehow though, the two halves fused to make a whole ghost. When I asked Vlad what happened to my human half, he told me that there were just some things that were better left unsaid."_

I paused to let that part of the story sink in before continuing.

_"I asked Vlad to help me, and at first I thought he was going to refuse. He had said something along the lines of why help you when I can stop this from happening, or something like that. In the end though, he used the Ghost Gauntlets to pull out the medallion which sent me careening through time and space until I made it back home._

_Once home, my ghost sense was going haywire, and I slowly began to realize why. That evil ghost was here and was planning to make sure that his timeline was set in stone. After tracking down my ghost half to the Nasty Burger where he had everyone tied up and had the secret sauce heating up, we fought. He wouldn't let me get to you guys, so the only way to get to you was to fight. I did and I got my butt handed to me, but I wasn't going to give up. In the end, I somehow managed to trap him in the Fenton Thermos, but I couldn't save you guys…and Nasty Burger exploded."_

Tucker screamed while patting himself down to make sure that he was solid. That caused everyone to look in his direction.

_"You mean, I'm dead? We're dead? You killed us? Dude, harsh!"_

I rubbed my head and looked at Tucker before continuing where I had left off.

_"I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There was this white flash of light from the explosion along with smoke and debris, but all I could do was scream. Suddenly, Clockwork appeared before me, and the explosion was frozen. Clockwork had stopped time, but I didn't understand. You guys were in that explosion, so why stop what was happening? Clockwork began speaking to me then, and then pointed. Everyone appeared right in front of me, unharmed and eyes closed. At first I couldn't understand why, but then it became clear. Clockwork explained everything to me, and I understood what I had to do. One of them was to make the right choice about my future. I ended up telling Lancer that I had the C.A.T. answers and he let me take a makeup test. Anyway, that's what happened and that's who that other ghost is."_

I took a deep breath after finally finishing the story. For the longest time, everything was quiet, but then I heard a faint crackling noise. I looked around the house, then out towards the front through the window. A certain area of the ghost shield that was protecting the house seemed to vanish momentarily before reappearing. I held my breath. Vlad never knew about our ghostly combination, so I was sure Alucard didn't know either. That meant he only knew the basic powers that Dark Phantom had, and if he didn't, he knew my powers pretty well. That meant, we were safe in the house at the moment, so what had I just witnessed?

_"Danny?"_ asked Dani, but I could hear the fear in her voice.

When I turned around, I couldn't help but shake my head in disbelief. There kneeling on the floor was a figure I knew all too well. He may have been shrouded in a purple cloak, but the Staff of Time that was lying inches in front of him gave away his identity.

_"Clockwork?!"_ I asked, startled by his appearance.

I knew for a fact that Clockwork had the power to see into many different futures, presents, and pasts, and so he would have been able to avoid injury to himself. If confronted, Clockwork could merely freeze or rewind time. I knew that first hand but this…

_"Clockwork!"_ I repeated, not realizing that I had slid over to him on my knees.

The male ghost didn't seem to respond, and when I tried to pull him to his feet, he only leaned against me, his hood falling away from his head. I had never seen him without his hood, so I was startled to see he had long, flowing sea green hair, and instead of shifting from elderly, to an infant to a middle aged man, he was stuck between the ages of 18 – 25. I couldn't really tell.

_"Clockwork?" _ I asked again, showing how worried I was.

He opened his red eyes which were as vibrant as usual, and he looked at me. His aquamarine blue skin was lighter than normal, and all the watches that he usually wore were no longer around his wrists and arms. Even the pendulum that was in the middle of his chest was no longer present.

Clockwork glanced at the floor and then at his Time Staff, which seemed to be fading from existence. I couldn't help but feel afraid. He looked back to me with a slight frown on his face.

_ "Clockwork?"_ I asked again, this time with ever growing anxiety. Would he just answer to his name, darn it?!

_"Danny…"_ he finally said, sounding dazed instead of hurt and in pain. I mean, he was leaking ectoplasm from deep gashes after all.

_"I am afraid, I am no longer…Master of Time. I can no longer…see the time streams."_

Okay, now I was deathly afraid.

_"I am out of time, Danny, but I have something for you."_

The former ghost of time reached for his Time Staff, which I happily handed to him. Okay, maybe not happily, but you know what I meant. He took the staff in his hands, despite the fact that it was practically translucent, and he held it tightly. He closed his eyes, let out a deep breath and spoke one last time, **_"Time out."_**

I was surprised to see that nothing happened. Time was still moving on as usual, at least that's what I thought until I looked back towards Clockwork. His Time Staff was hovering in the air, but the former Master of Time was gone. The hands on the Time Staff no longer moved, like its gears had been frozen. Slowly, the staff began to descend and head towards me. I blinked as it stopped in front of me, waiting for me to grasp it. I hesitated, but then gripped the handle. At that moment, everything stopped and the room around me began to glow a vibrant white. It blocked out everyone and everything around me. Not only that, but I was forced to transform into my ghost mode. I closed my eyes tightly and shook my head, afraid of what was to happen, but then suddenly everything cleared and I found myself in Clockwork's tower. Everything looked the same. The windows to different times were still up, but there was no sign of Clockwork. I felt my stomach turn, and my eyes began to burn.

Just then I noticed movement from the corner of my eye. I turned around, only to find two giant eyeballs attached to bodies complete with arms and most likely legs underneath their robes. The two of them were watching me, and I knew I had to say something. All common sense seemed to escape me, however, and I found myself yelling things that even I had no idea about. The two jerks, known as the Observants just looked at me…no, observed me for a moment before raising their hands and silencing me. One of them spoke, his tone as harsh as I remember, yet I could sense pity there. I never knew that they could pity anything.

_"Our deepest condolences, Phantom. We know that you and Clockwork were…close. That much is clear just by you being brought before us."_

The other Observant nodded once in confirmation before he took over the conversation.

_"Yes it would seem that Clockwork has left the Time Scepter to you. It was his treasure, so treat it well."_

I looked at the Time Staff, yeah, STAFF, stupid eyeballs, and realized that I had never seen Clockwork without it. I just thought it was, you know, the source of all his powers, but I'm sure I was wrong.

_"Clockwork's powers were very broad. He used certain instruments to channel his energies through. His favorite was that scepter, however. He once said that it made him feel like a sorcerer. He had been younger by millennia."_ said the first Observant.

I just decided to call them Obs 1 and 2. It would make things easier.

Obs 2 seemed like he was reminiscing and that only made me shake my head. When I did that, I felt tears run down my face. They were talking about Clockwork like he was dead. He wasn't. He just couldn't be. I refused to accept it. Obs 1 continued speaking though, but I hadn't really heard him. I just wanted to know why I was there. Certainly I wasn't nominated to take Clockwork's place. Even I knew that was a bad idea.

Obs 1 seemed stop and contemplate before narrowing his giant eye for a head.

_"Phantom, you need to pay close attention. Clockwork has chosen you to hold his scepter. He has chosen you to pick the new Master of Time."_ I blinked back tears and looked at the two eyeballs before shaking my head.

I could feel my energy growing uncontrollable inside me.

_"Clockwork said that he could no longer see the time streams. Clockwork was fading when he landed in my living room. I don't understand…he should have known that he would have succumbed to something like this! What…"_

Obs 1 raised his hand to silence me, and I just glared at him.

_"Clockwork was an ancient being. He was one of the first ghosts in the Ghost Zone along side of us and Pariah the Dark. He's been watching over time since the very beginning. Like all things, however, certain traits become lost when you get older. Certain abilities, certain traits…it was only a matter of time until it happened, and Clockwork did know. He had seen two individuals who would take his place. One was the wielder of his scepter and the other was the wielder of the pendulum."_

Obs 2 then shook his head.

_"I am afraid, we do not have time to explain this step by step to you, Phantom. You have many responsibilities this day, and you must succeed in all of them. Remember, Phantom, you must be the one to recognize the new Master of Time. Ironically you must also protect your hometown."_

I nearly dropped the scepter. How could I have forgotten about the ghosts that were plaguing my Amity Park?!

_"Send me home!"_ I yelled as I wiped the few remaining tears from my eyes.

The Observants did as told, and in no time I was back home. Once there, I found my friends standing in the same place as I had left then, as though I hadn't been gone for nearly ten minutes at all. I waltzed over to the window and looked out, surprised to see that Alucard and Dark Phantom were no longer outside. Hopefully the town's ghost shield had been raised in time. It would force those ghosts out of the town, at least until the ghost shield ran out of power, and that was going to be awhile.

TBC


	3. Lights Out

Chapter Three: Lights Out

****TF****

My mind was racing as I watched Danny frantically paced from the couch to the window and back again. I knew something had happened, yet I wasn't aware of what. All I knew was that Danny was holding this scepter in his hands while mumbling incoherently to himself. If Danny wasn't my best friend, and if I didn't know him that well, I would say that he was crazy.

_ "Yo dude."_ I started, trying to get my best bud's attention.

_"If you keep pacing like that, you're going to wear a hole in the floor."_

Danny didn't seem to notice me, so his mother stepped up to him and placed her hands on his shoulders. This seemed to cause Danny to flinch, but then he calmed down. He looked at his mom before turning his head towards the window. I could tell just by looking that there was so much going on in Danny's mind that it was driving him up the wall. I sighed and looked to my right which was where Dani and Mr. Fenton were standing. Dani had her hands to her sides while Mr. Fenton was looking around. He was probably thinking about the ghost that had just made it through the Ghost Shield and the fact that it was the very same ghost of time that Danny had been speaking about during the story.

I, on the other hand, was contemplating the entire thing; the ghost of time, the story, dying and not remembering. With a shake of my head, I walked over to the window, not noticing that Sam had sat herself down on the couch. I somewhat had the feeling I knew what she was thinking, but I wasn't going to say anything. Now wasn't the time.

_ "So that ghost…is half you and half Vlad?"_ I heard Danny's dad question out loud.

I turned to face him and then looked at Danny who was holding that scepter that I noticed earlier. I gave it a quizzical look before turning back towards the window. Alucard and Dark Phantom were nowhere in sight which was a good thing.

I then realized that I needed to make a few calls. Being mayor of Amity Park was important and they needed to know that I was fine in this time of crisis. I pulled out my cellphone and walked into the kitchen for a bit of privacy so that I could call not only the office but my parents. Being the youngest mayor in the history of ever meant that you had a responsibility to the town and a ten-thirty curfew.

[==Character Transition==]

****SM****

I was completely shocked at everything that I had heard, but I thought I did a pretty good job at hiding it. I was scared; not just for myself, but for Danny. After hearing that story could anyone blame me? It was just so complicated thinking about that fusion of Vlad and Danny, and knowing that it was probably the most formidable ghost since Pariah Dark! Not to mention that Danny, being the big shot hero that he was, would go out there and fight it in order to protect the town, not to mention that clone of Vlad. I rubbed the palm of my hands in my eyes until I saw different colors cloud my vision. Danny is my boyfriend, and though I was worried for him before our relationship flourished, the feeling of anxiety increased.

Hearing Danny's father question the fusion again made me look up from where I was sitting. Dani and Mr. Fenton were standing side by side for once, while Mrs. Fenton was hugging Danny close, most likely in a comforting way. Danny was completely out of it though. He had been pacing around a few moments ago after all. Jazz had been sitting in a two seat chair opposite the couch I was sitting on, and she was wearing a frown. She was probably feeling similar to the way that I was. Danny was her little brother after all.

Taking a deep breath of my own, I turned to face Danny who had managed to get out of his mother's grasp. He was holding that scepter in his hands tightly and was currently staring down at it.

_"Danny?"_ I found myself asking, my tone full of worry. He visibly tensed before looking at me. I gave him a slight smile, and he returned it, but I could tell it was forced.

_"We'll get through this. You've beaten him once already."_

_"That's true,"_ mumbled Danny, who had turned his attention back to the scepter in his hands. I could see the sadness in his eyes. He had just lost a friend, despite the fact that said friend was a ghost who tricked him into pretty much learning a lesson.

_"He's not as strong this time around because he's being controlled. I could use that to my advantage…"_stated Danny, with a little more confidence.

I could feel the muscles in my face forming a smile, but I fought the urge.

To help with that urge, I asked, _"Is that my cue to go retrieve the Techno Geek so we can start planning or what?"_

_"That's your cue to retrieve the Techno Geek,"_ confirmed Danny with a half-smile.

With that, I stood to my feet and watched as Danny's green eyes lock on with my purple ones. I could tell that he had been crying, but at the moment the brightness and intensity made me smirk. Here was the confident ghost hero that I knew.

_"That it is, Sam. That it is."_

[==Character Transition==]

****TF****

After I finished talking with my parents, who I had called first because I knew that calling the office would take longer, I walked over to the fridge to get something to eat. All this craziness was enough to fuel my appetite. I just hoped the Fentons didn't mind me eating the last of their bologna. As soon as I finish preparing my sandwich, I turned around only to come face to face with Sam. I could see that there was some sort of progress being made in the next room, but that only made me frown. I knew that it was planning time, and that usually meant that I was the planner.

It's not that I'm annoyed with my friends for always coming to me when they need a plan, but it's the fact that they have the worst timing. I hadn't even gotten to bite into my succulent sandwich before I was hauled off by my arm into the living room. With a small sigh, I yanked my arm from Sam and straightened my dress shirt. I then look to Danny who's no longer in ghost mode. When exactly did he go ghost anyway?

Danny was sitting on the couch between his mother and his father. Jazz was still sitting in the two seat chair on the opposite side, but Dani was sitting beside her, also in her human form. I shake my head and watched as Sam leaned her back against the wall. Danny was the first to speak.

_ "So we need a plan, but first we need to know more about Vlad's clone."_

All eyes looked everywhere as though searching the air for answers, mine included. That's when I came up with an idea.

_ "Mr. and Mrs. Fenton?"_ I asked, gaining both of their attention.

_"How'd you get through the Ghost Shield almost unharmed? I mean, despite both of those ghosts being right outside, they shouldn't have been disoriented for long."_

All eyes seemed to turn to the two elder Fentons. Mrs. Fenton placed a finger to her chin and thought back while Mr. Fenton's face was frowned up a bit.

_ "Well, when we got out of the RV we saw what we thought was Vladdie. Of course, we sort of froze when we saw him. He was so young looking. He had been getting to his feet, but stopped when he saw Maddie. He looked at her with these big, googly eyes before I blasted him. After I blasted him, he started to attack me. He was really going at it. Although…he did make sure that he didn't use any energy when he was near Maddie…"_

I could hear the anger and even jealousy in Mr. Fenton's voice. The look on his face was that of a bull when it sees red. I remembered the day that Mr. Fenton found out the truth about Vlad, and how Vlad had betrayed his friendship and trust. I had never seen Mr. Fenton so…I mean, the guy's like a big Teletubby or something. He loves fudge with a side of sunshine, rainbows and ghost hunting. He's practically a big teddy bear, so when Vlad showed his betrayal…wow.

Danny and Jazz groaned, but that confirmed one thing which I just had to acknowledge.

_"Which means that he still shares many traits with his original. Since he's a clone, we could probably find a way to destabilize him."_

Danny leaned against the backrest of the couch while balancing the scepter in the palm of his right hand.

_"I hope you don't plan on using mom as bait. That's never a good idea when it comes to anything pertaining Vlad like qualities."_

Immediately I shake my head, putting out that idea like a fire extinguisher would to a flame. I then smiled as I pulled out my trusty PDA. I began to key in some things with the stylus while I began to explain my theory. Of course, only Dani, Danny, Sam and I understood the beginning.

_ "Remember what Danny told us about…Danielle? How when he first met her she had been into the same things he had, like Dumpty Humpty and NASA? Not to mention how she immediately took a disliking to Dash?"_

Sam nodded as did Danny, but I wasn't paying attention. I was looking at Dani.

_ "You weren't kidding about those things, were you Dani?"_

Dani shook her head. She had indeed liked those things and disliked Dash.

_"Alright, then let's assume that it's because she shares almost all of her traits with Danny. Let's also assume that Vlad's clone was created the same way. This would mean Alucard would be into the same things that the original Vlad was. It would be for this reason that he had taken notice of Danny's mom."_

Danny groaned audibly, but I ignored him and continued.

_"With everything that Danny's gathered on Vlad over the years, plus the things that Mr. and Mrs. Fenton remember about him from their college days, we can come up with something to distract him long enough so that we can take him down without a problem, preferable something to destabilize him so we won't have to worry about him coming back like the other ghosts."_

Everyone sat quietly as they took in my plan. A few minutes later, Mrs. Fenton spoke.

_ "We've been working on something that could disturb a ghost's molecular structure so that it would fade into nothingness, but we stopped after learning about Danny's secret."_

I could see the half smile on Danny's face. He was thankful for that, but at the same time he was wishing that they hadn't stopped.

_ "We could continue to work on it, but it might take a while to perfect."_

I nod my head, and then looked towards Danny who was still balancing the scepter in the palm of his hand. He was wearing a frown.

_"Well that'll be one problem out the way. The other problem is the ghost with the need to cause destruction and to spill blood,"_ he spoke sarcastically.

_"Yeah, but he's being controlled by Al at the moment,"_ stated Jazz matter-of-factly.

Danny looked at his sister with a look that stated 'shut it', but she didn't seem to notice. Sam, who was still leaning against the wall, decided that now was the time to speak up.

_"But how is Alucard controlling a monster like that? If we do away with him first, how do we know it won't cause Dark Dan to regain his senses?"_

Danny, Dani and I looked at Sam with raised eyebrows before simultaneously asking, _"Dark Dan?"_

Sam made this weird look before shrugging her shoulders. Danny seemed slightly peeved at the name, but then turned to face the window.

_"She's right. When Al released Dark PHANTOM, he asked me if I thought he was dumb enough to release a ghost that powerful without being able to control it. I don't remember now if he put something on Dark Phantom or if he has some sort of powers that Vlad doesn't. Heck, I don't even understand how Alucard got his hands on that particular thermos considering that it was locked away with..."_

Danny stopped talking and looked down at the scepter. Being his best friend, I could tell what Danny was thinking. I shrugged my shoulders before looking back down at my PDA. I had been busy typing in what I heard that I hadn't really noticed that Dani was now pacing around in the same fashion that Danny had been earlier, until I looked up that is. She had a frown on her face and she was clearly thinking.

_"That just means we have to take out Dark Phantom first. Stuffing him back in the Fenton Thermos seems like the easiest way, especially if he had Danny shaking in his HAZMAT suit."_

I could tell that Dani hadn't meant that as an insult, but I could tell that Danny was fuming at the comment. Everyone knew that Danny had the right to be terrified after all. I started typing on my PDA some more when the lights in the house began to flicker. I looked over to Danny who was looking at the ceiling. He hopped over the couch and rushed towards the window.

_"It's not just our house. All the houses lights are flickering."_ said Danny as he turned back around.

Sam was standing beside me, while Dani was standing in front of us.

_ "Danny, remember when I told you that in my first encounter, Alucard had white hair?"_

Danny stood silently, but me, being the smart guy that I am, knew what she meant.

_ "His human half,"_ I commented out loud.

_"That's the half that WE saw which meant he wasn't at full 'Ghost' power, at least I don't think. I remember when Danny first got his powers. He could use his intangibility while in his human form, no sweat, but the more complex maneuvers such as ecto-blasts and flying almost always drained him immediately. It was as though it took away his energy in one single attempt at whatever. Alucard, on the other hand, was able to fly, produce a shield and do other things pre-transformation."_

Danny slammed his fist against the wall. He hadn't realized all of that until after Dani and I had said something, which is usually how things went. Before I knew it, Danny had gone intangible and ran through the side of the house while dodging a few weapons that the Fenton's hadn't fixed so they wouldn't mean Danny any harm. Sam and I took the front door while Dani took the same route as Danny. Mr. and Mrs. Fenton, plus Jazz stayed inside. The two elder Fentons had decided to get to work on their part of the plan, while Jazz would monitor Amity Park from the second lab or the family's Operations Center, also known as the Op-Center. I had a feeling that things were really going to get hectic. I really wish that I was wearing my casual clothes because I knew that it was definitely' Go Time.'

[==Character Transition==]

****SM****

I don't know what made Danny run off the way he did, but I was following right behind him. I understand that Danny may have overlooked a few things about Alucard, but now he was just rushing to find the guy, most likely before the clone could do any damage. Tucker and Dani were trailing a bit, though I know that Dani could easily keep up with Danny. Ugh, why'd their names have to be so similar?! Danielle was most likely keeping tabs on Tucker since he was pretty much the slowest of the four of us, not to mention the mayor of Amity Park.

_"Danny!"_ I called out, trying to halt my headstrong BF before he got himself killed.

Tucker didn't even come up with a plan on how to get Dark Phantom in a thermos or how to keep Alucard distracted, so what exactly was Danny doing?

Danny hadn't heard me call out to him, or if he did he ignored me. I stopped and took a look around. I know what's going on. It's practically Villainy 101. If you can't get your prey out of hiding, and your prey is a naïve kid with a hero complex, draw him out in a way that you know he won't ignore. Causing destruction and endangering the lives of millions was definitely one way of getting Danny's attention.

_"DANNY!"_ I yelled again.

Danielle and Tucker stop beside me while Danny kept running. I can't believe the guy is actually running headlong into a trap. Actually I can, but I would have at least thought he'd think this one through a little more considering who his opponents were.

_"Don't worry Sam. You and Tucker take cover, I'll see what I can do,"_ reassured Danielle as she flew on ahead to catch up with Danny.

I can't help but stand there with my arms crossed, frown planted firmly on my face. I can feel my cheeks heat up; I'm so angry. I can't believe those two.

I glanced to my side at Tucker who's hunched over with his hands on his knees. Clearly he's out of breath by the small distance that we just ran. I grab him by his arm and start running after the two Phantoms. They are not about to leave us behind.

_"Come on, Tucker,"_ I snarled. Tucker merely whines, much too out of breath to argue back with me.

Once we got to where the city's power supply is kept, we stopped and took cover. There, hovering over the main building was Dark Dan. His flaming white hair whipped back and forth in the air as he seemed to survey the area. His cape flapped gently behind him despite the lack of wind.

_"Whoa,"_ Tucker and I breathed simultaneously.

You don't have to have ghost powers for your senses to start reacting like crazy. This ghost was definitely bad news, but I wasn't about to back down. Obviously Danny wasn't either.

There, a few feet away from Dark Dan, hovered Danny. He was just hovering in front of him, waiting for an attack or something to happen. There was no sign of Danielle, so I could only assume that she was inside. I hadn't noticed, but Danny had brought that stupid scepter along with him. It must have really meant a lot for him to lug it all the way here, but the question was when was he going to put it down and start kicking ghostly butt?

Tucker was also watching the non-existent fight. I wasn't sure what he was thinking, but if I had to guess it would probably be along the lines of, let's get this party started, or hurry up and pound this guy Danny. Meh, perhaps those were just my thoughts, but I was getting impatient.

_"What's stopping you, Danny?" _I whispered silently as I watched Danny just hover.

Neither one was making any move to go after the other which, in my book, meant that they were sizing each other up, waiting for the other to attack, or something wasn't right.

_"Do you think Dark Dan is blind? I mean, Danny's floating right there. If he's so powerful, then why doesn't he attack?"_ I asked, turning my attention to Tucker.

Tucker gives me this look which I take offensive. I got my hand ready to smack him senseless, but he blurted out the reason which makes me feel like an idiot.

_"He's being controlled, remember Sam? Maybe Alucard doesn't want him to attack just yet. Maybe Dark Phantom is there to be some sort of distraction. I mean, Danny's terrified of him, right? Maybe Alucard realized this after Danny's display of cowardice back at the house? Remember his terrified scream which ended up turning into a Ghostly Wail? Al knows that Danny is scared. All Dark Phantom has to do is hover there menacingly. Danny won't attack if Dark Phantom won't. Besides, we didn't exactly grab any weapons on the way out of the house…"_

Tucker was right. I knew it in my heart. This was a ghost that Danny was terrified of. Maybe it was because it was a possible outcome for the way his life could be. Perhaps it was because of the power this ghost held. It didn't matter though. What mattered at the moment was that Danny had to get over this fear and fight that ghost. At that moment, I felt something cold appear beside me. Looking over, I blink and see Danielle materialize in front of me.

_"Alucard is inside."_

Danielle looked sad momentarily, but then spoke hastily.

_"I saw him through an open window, but when I tried to go through it, I couldn't get in through. I just bounced back."_

Tucker and I looked at Danielle, both of us had on a confused expression.

_"It's like a Ghost Shield is surrounding it, but when I went into my human form I still couldn't get inside."_

Tucker made this noise before he looked back up at Danny.

_ "I remember Danny telling me something about how Vlad had made adjustments to his own Ghost Shield. It was back when Vlad stole Mr. Fenton's Ecto-Skeleton."_

I nod at Tucker. I remember Danny saying something... It was after Danny had defeated Pariah Dark with an invention called the Ecto-Skeleton. It was pretty much an Exoskeleton that allowed a person to go head to head with a ghost, or something like that. It had a downside which was that it needed a very powerful energy source to keep it going otherwise it would drain the wearer. Danny had worn it to fight off Pariah's invasion and then Pariah himself, but after the battle he completely worn out. I think he had been out of it for a few days. During that time, the Ecto-Skeleton had disappeared, only it hadn't really disappeared. Vlad was able to steal it when no-one was looking.

A week or so later, Danny and Jazz had gotten into a fight. She had been trying her hardest to help Danny catch ghosts despite the fact that he had been handling himself for about a year. She had managed to capture him in a thermos at least three times, and even managed to unintentionally help Skulker steal an invention for Vlad. In the end, she decided to prove herself by taking down Vlad. Danny ended up being kidnapped by Skulker and taken to Vlad as a gift. Vlad ended up forcing Danny and Jazz to fight each other inside of a designated area. He had a Ghost Shield which kept both of them inside.

What Danielle was telling us now, was that Alucard was using the same thing to keep them from getting to him. That would also explain why Dark Dan wasn't attacking. He didn't need to. Not yet. No, there was nothing Danny could do at the moment to stop them. We would have to wait, and if we waited then the town would be defenseless.

_ "Tucker, do something!"_ I screamed, making sure to stare down Tucker as I did.

_"I'm working on it!" _ he yelled back as he continued to key in certain codes on his PDA.

At that moment, the lights flickered once more, and Danielle flew back into the sky. I watched her hover beside Danny; the two of them wearing equally frightened faces.

_"I don't like this, Tuck,"_ I mumbled to the techno geek. At that moment, the lights began to go out, and the Ghost Shield around the power plant began to flicker.

I turned my attention back towards Fenton Works. Their Ghost Shield, which you could see from practically anywhere, also began to flicker.

_ "Yeah well, you're going to like this even less, Sam…"_

TBC


	4. Back to the LabAgain?

Chapter Four: Back to the Lab…Again?

**_**MF**_**

I couldn't believe that I was currently in the lab mixing chemicals in an attempt to help my son destroy, what used to be my best friend's, clone. The conflicting thoughts and emotions made me rub my head while trying to remain calm. With the flickering of the lights in the lab and Jack's incoherent babbling, it was hard to concentrate. I placed a container of blue ectoplasm on the table closest to the Ghost Portal, then I began to walk around in search of a flashlight. I had a feeling that the lights were going to go out for a while, and that meant that I needed to be ready. Sure, we had backup generators but those had been fried a few months ago while Danny had been fighting a ghost named Technus. According to Danny, his friends and his notes, this particular ghost can manipulate electronics of any kind. He can digitize himself into the cyber world, and corrupt any computer programming when given the right amount of time.

Jack had stated that he would fix the generators, but he never got around to it, and I had been much too busy to do it myself. I would've tried to fix them today if I had the time, but I have to prioritize. The Ecto-Dejecto, which Jack invented a while back, was supposed to be used to cause ghostly powers to shrivel up like a raisin in the sun, is the 'new invention' we had been working on prior to Danny's big reveal as being the ghost boy of Amity Park. We had to basically start at the beginning in order to work out why it was only causing ghosts to grow in size and strength instead of negating their powers. Of course, there were a few miscalculations on Jack's part.

What we needed to do now was correct the miscalculations and create the Ecto-Dejecto 2.0 to use on Alucard and the evil combination of my little Danny and Vlad.

I searched through drawer after drawer until I finally felt the flashlight. Taking it in both hands due to its size (being that of a loaf of bread), I carefully sat it on the table that I had retrieved it from. I rubbed my head before turning my attention back to my husband Jack. The look he had on his face was that of a man who was concentrating hard on something. Yes, he was definitely concentrating, but not on what he needed to be focused on.

_"Jack?"_ I asked while taking hold of the flashlight. I began to walk over towards him. He was holding a beaker in his hands which was filled with black ectoplasm, a highly potent and highly dangerous substance.

As I got closer to my husband, I stepped into his line of sight and took a hold of the container of ectoplasm. His grip didn't tighten nor did it loosen, so it took a bit to get the item. When I succeeded in getting the container, Jack suddenly sprang to reality.

_"I need some fudge,"_ he mumbled pathetically before he began to absently ascend the stairs to the kitchen.

I didn't try to stop him. How could I when I knew what it was that he was thinking. It was the same thing he had been thinking ever since Vlad finally came clean and told Jack exactly what he thought of him. I placed the black ectoplasm on the table nearest the stairs, then went and retrieved the blue ectoplasm. Once again the lights flickered and I had to stop for a moment. Shortly the lights came back on, but I couldn't help but to worry. It wasn't just the power at our home after all. If the town's Ghost Shield were to go down…we could be looking forward to an entire ghost invasion!

I quickened my pace and grabbed the blue ectoplasm before I scurried back over and up the stairs. I found Jack sitting at the kitchen table with a plate of fudge. I watched him curiously before making my way towards the Ops Center. I wanted Jasmine to be near me just in case things went wrong.

_"Jack…"_ I said silently as I turned back to look at him one more time.

[==Character Transition==]

**_**Jazz**_**

I had been in the Ops Center in hopes that I could do something to help in this time of crisis, but the only ones who seem capable of doing anything would be my brother, Dani, Sam, Tucker and my parents. Sam and Tucker had been there for Danny since the beginning. They had been there when he got his powers, and they had been there helping him train and watching him practice. They themselves even practiced with some of the weapons, and so they know them inside and out whereas I only know a few and occasionally get in the way. For Danny's sake, I tend to stay back now so that he doesn't have to worry about trying to save me. It's hard knowing that I'm the occasional moral support and that I can't be out in the field with him, but he knows I'm here when he needs me.

Footsteps behind me alerted me to someone's presence; my mother's presence to be precise.

_"Jazz, I want you to come downstairs with me. If the lights do go out, then I want to be sure that you're alright,"_ she said, sounding a little upset.

I knew that she was worried about Danny. I was too, but she had a job to do. Sometimes I wonder how she does it. The strain of being a professional ghost hunter, a scientist, a mother and a devoted wife has to be stressful more than half the time, yet she manages to keep everything together. With a nod of my head, I stand from the chair that I had been sitting on. I followed her out of the Ops Center, down the stairs into the main room, then into the kitchen where I see my dad and a plate of untouched fudge. I couldn't believe it. There was a plate of fudge…untouched…in FRONT of my dad! I knew there was something wrong, but I just couldn't bring myself to ask him what it was. If I had to guess, just by the look of him, I'd say that it was guilt eating away at him. I wanted to tell my dad that what happened to Vlad was an accident, and that Vlad had taken things too far, but the more I say those things, the more my dad denies it or tries to somewhat see things from Vlad's point of view. My dad has a one track mind, and I know that he'll get over it on his own, and hopefully soon.

My mom motioned for me to follow her down the stairs that lead into the lab. I walked past my dad and into the basement and looked around. My mom was already at the table, working on their latest invention. With nothing better to do, I decided to help her by giving her the items that she asked for. At first, the silence was deafening so I started to whistle a tune that I had heard somewhere before. My mother momentarily stopped and looked at me before she gave me a small smile. The silence must have bothered her too.

A few more seconds of whistling and I stopped, not knowing the rest of the song. It was then that my mother started to talk to me, asking me questions about Danny. I knew that there were a lot of things that hadn't been explained, and I wasn't sure if I had the right to tell my mom certain things. It should have been Danny's choice to tell them, and the only reason they even know now that he's a phantom was because I thought that we were all going to die so I blabbed. It wouldn't have been right for them to die not knowing what happened to Danny.

During the time of the whole 'Asteroid hurting towards Earth' thing, Vlad had tried to take over the world. He had promised to get rid of the asteroid by turning it intangible so that it would just float harmlessly through the Earth. It would have worked out fine too if it weren't for a small probably. The asteroid was composed entirely of Ectoranium which, according to mom, dad, and Vlad, was untouchable by ghosts. That meant that Vlad couldn't even get close to it! Danny, who had gone and gave up his ghost powers because he thought that those loons 'Masters' Blasters' could handle ghost fighting and because he had been making a fool of himself, took matters into his own hands…well, at least after he managed to somehow get his powers back.

He and Tucker spoke out to the town of Amity Park, Danny in Ghost form and Tucker as himself, stating their own idea. Danny would turn the asteroid intangible. He'd turn the entire planet intangible. Of course, for one half ghost that task would sure be impossible, right? Right. Tucker had come up with a plan for that. Using a big enough transfer device (By big I mean on a global scale) and a powerful ghostly source, it would be possible. Of course, this meant retrieve ghosts from the Ghost Zone, which Danny had decided to handle himself.

Danny took the Specter Speeder into a natural Ghost Portal that opened up above the Artic which was our base of operations during the final moments. As time ticked away, we thought that Danny had encountered trouble because he had been taking way to long. It was then that the Speeder had sped out of the Ghost Zone. We all cheered, thinking that it was Danny Phantom, but soon our hopes somewhat died. The Speeder crashed into a mountain and exploded. I thought Danny was dead, and so did everyone else.

My dad had said that he loved us and that he was proud of us. My mom had said something like, _'At least we're all together.'_ I tried to confess right then and there…but I looked over towards where 'Danny' was standing. That was when she noticed that Danny wasn't there, and that it was the old Tuck Bot. The Tuck Bot was basically a robot version of Tucker that Danny had made back when we were rich thanks to mom and dad selling the lab to the Guys In White.

Anyway, the Tuck Bot had been dressed up like Danny to keep everyone from noticing that he was gone. It worked on dad, of course, but mom was much more observant. She asked me where was Danny. At first, I didn't know how to answer her. I didn't want to answer her. That was when I looked at the mountain expectantly; hoping to see Danny while the other half of me tried to tell my mother that he had crashed into it.

My mom asked my dad, quite loudly, _'Where's Danny'_.

That was when Sam, who was there with us, along with Tucker and a lot of people from Amity Park, shouted for us to look at the portal. When we did, that was when we saw Danny fly out with a hoard of ghosts. A lot of the ghosts I instantly recognized. I saw Skulker, Technus, that wishing ghost genie girl, Johnny, and a whole lot more. Danny had made it back with help! They all channeled their power of intangibility into the huge transfer device in order to turn the entire planet intangible. It had worked like a charm! After that…well, Danny ended up revealing his secret to the entire world. Statues were even made in his owner, much to his complete and utter embarrassment.

Anyway, mom and I talked about little things pertaining to Danny's powers. She still couldn't understand how he was only half a ghost considering that he should be completely dead. Ignoring that concept, she was also curious as to why he had ice powers and why Danielle was female, which I have to admit I'm curious about too. There were also things like how powerful she rated Danny. So far, he rated an 8. I knew that mom was rambling because she was nervous, but at the same time I knew that I had to keep her focused.

_"Mom, what's that black goo for?"_ I asked as I pointed to the container of, what I knew to be black ectoplasm.

_"That, sweetie, is another form of Ectoplasm. This form of ectoplasm is from malevolent spirits. It's highly dangerous to humans, but has the potential to turn a docile spirit into a ravenous monster. It's near impossible to come by, but thanks to Danny, we were able to retrieve a sample from the Ghost Zone."_

I nodded my head, not really too much listening. I was just trying to get her back to the task at hand. It seemed to work, for the most part. She began to hum to herself while measuring different amounts of blue ectoplasm. As much as I wanted to know why the ectoplasm came in a variety of colors, I knew better than to ask unless I wanted a very long and very detailed summary of each type. I jumped a bit as the lights in the lab cut off for a few seconds, then came back on. I had a feeling that it was only a matter of time before they went off completely.

I took note of the flashlight that was on the tabletop before I gripped it with both hands and held it close. My mom didn't object. She must have come to the same conclusion that I had. It would be better if someone held it just in case the lights went off permanently, that way no-one would have had to search around for it blindly, and accidently knock something down.

After a few more seconds, my mom started talking again, this time about Danny AND Sam. I giggled a bit at the questions knowing that Danny would kill me if he knew I answered them…even so, it was worth it. It made the atmosphere a bit more relaxing after all.

[==Character Transition==]

**_**Jack**_**

_*Flashback*_

_*Setting: University of Wisconsin College Laboratory_

**_ "I'm telling you Jack, it won't work," _****stated Vladdie nonchalantly while pointing towards the prototype Ghost Portal.**

**_"Bogus V-Man, it totally will. This portal is guaranteed to bust open a portal into the ghost dimension,"_**** I replied happily before shooting Maddie a confident smile.**

**She returned the smile then walked towards the desk where the remainder of my notes had been. I didn't see her smile fade as she quickly skimmed over my calculations.**

**_ "Jack, these calculations aren't right," _****Maddie said right before I pressed the button on the remote which started up the portal.**

**_ "BANZAI!" _****I yelled as seconds before my finger jabbed down the big red button.**

**_ "BOGUS!"_****cried Vladdie as a highly concentrated blast of ectoplasm shot out of the malfunctioning portal and into his face, causing his face to break out with ectoplasm filled pimples known as Ecto-Acne.**

_*Flashback End*_

I remembered it all as if it were yesterday. How could I have been so blind to my actions? Sure I wasn't as smart as Maddie and Vladdie. They were A+ students, and I was a B-…solid B- student, but that's beside the point. Now that I looked back on it, I guess I could slightly see how angry Vladdie was with me. How he had refused to talk to me for twenty years, then suddenly invites us to the college reunion he was hosting. It had been to humiliate me, and I think it somewhat worked, although I can't be too sure…

Then there were those comments that he would make casually about how he would steal Mads from me, but those weren't just comments. I was just too daft to hear the truth in his words, or the hatred he had. I had been such a fool, and everyone knows it. Vladdie had been my best friend though…it's hard to cope with a betrayal. I mean, he tried to have me **KILLED**, tried to take** MY** son, **AND MY WIFE**!

I grunted angrily as I looked down at my **UNTOUCHED** plate of fudge. Usually I can down a plate of fudge in literally no time at all, but this time…the pain I feel sort of outweighs my need for the fudgy goodness.

I turned my head slightly to the side and peered at the clock on the wall. How much time had passed since I came up stairs to wallow in self-pity? I dunno, but I knew that I needed to get back to work on the ED2.0 otherwise Maddie would get upset. I pushed my plate of fudge to the side before I made my way to the stairs that led down into the lab. I could hear my wife and my daughter speaking. When had Jazz got down there? I must have been really out of it. Anyway, I hear them speaking, talking about Danny and his friends. I couldn't help but give a little crooked smile. Danny had been saving the world from ghosts for so long, and we hadn't even realized it.

My smile slowly faded as I realized how oblivious to the world I really am. My own son was Inviso-Bill, the Ghost Boy, Phantom…Danny Phantom. I should have realized it sooner. A side by side comparison of Danny Phantom and Danny Fenton…the hair, the scrawny physique…Even then names…I feel like such a moron. I guess that part of what Vlad said about me was true…

I slowly make my way down the stairs with my head lowered a bit. I still can't help but to think that this could have all been prevented by me just re-reading my stupid calculations for the Proto-Portal. If I hadn't been in such a rush…if I hadn't been so excited…then Vladdie wouldn't have been hit in the face with a rogue blast of ectoplasm which gave him Ecto-Acne and his ghost powers. Ah, the Ecto-Acne…it's like acne, but it's infused with ectoplasm so the little pimples look more like boils.

The first sign of Ecto-Acne was when Vladdie took a hit to the face. He downright refused to let us study him in order to find a cure. He said that I had done enough damage. He had been escorted off the school grounds after that. It had been the last we heard of him, at least for twenty years.

The next case of Ecto-Acne was a little bit after Vlad came back into our lives. Maddie and I were going to go out for 80's Night at the Material Grill, but Danny had left his wallet at home. Being the great parents that we are…well, that Maddie is, we went to give our little Danny his wallet. In doing so, we ended up being late, but in hindsight that was a good thing. If we had left any earlier, we wouldn't have seen Vladdie, Sam, and Tucker, who all had the dreaded Ecto-Acne, only this time it was fatal.

With the help of Jazz and Danny, Maddie and I were able to get the three of them to our lab where we conducted not-so-painful tests and experiments in hopes of quickly finding a cure. The three of them were fading fast. It was then that Danny spoke up, although at the time we were more concerned about the fact that he wasn't in his protective wear so he wouldn't catch the acne. Anyway, he had asked if the abnormalities that we couldn't identify in the acne were consistent with that of diet cola. He had been right. Later when he told us about his powers, his adventures, and his time traveling incidents, it had come to my attention that the Ecto-Acne was also my fault. Instead of putting Ecto-Purifier into the Proto-Portal, I had put in diet cola.

Of course they tried to convince me that it was an accident, and it truly was, but I had been so excited and in such a rush…all of that could have been prevented.

Absently I walked back up the stairs and into the kitchen. I took a few bites out of the fudge that I had left on the plate, then sat down at the table. I put my head down and just sat there, unsure of what I SHOULD do to help. It seems that every time I try to do something extraordinary, I mess it up big time. If it weren't for Maddie, all of the inventions that we have wouldn't work or would backfire. I think it's just best if I tended to the fudge.

The more I thought about it, the more I began to realize how big a failure I really am. Maddie's the real genius, she's a black belt, she's got great aim, she always seems to know when something's afoot, and right now she was the only one really attending to the Dejecto 2.0 which…I dunno, seems logical.

Silently I continue to eat my fudge until the lights go out. I wait for one minute, then two…then I realize that this time the power was out for good.

_"Oh no," _I stated as I rose to my feet. _"The lights are out!"_

I tried to run towards the lab stairs only to run into the wall. As I hit the wall, I think that perhaps running blindly was a bad idea. That was something else to add to my list. I grunt as I back away from the wall and walk forward, only to hit the wall again.

_"Jack?"_ I heard my wife shout from downstairs. A few seconds later I see the light from one of the flashlights that we keep down in the lab.

I rubbed my aching nose, which I obviously hit on the wall, before I turned to look at Maddie. I could tell that she was worried about me, and I felt bad. She had more important things to be worried about, like the safety of our son, his friends, and the town in that order.

_"Jack?"_ she repeated while placing her hand on my shoulder.

I slouched forward and looked at her sadly before turning my attention towards the kitchen window. It had grown darker outside, and the town's Ghost Shield started lowering.

_"The kids are still out there,"_ I mumbled before making up my mind.

I still had the keys to the Fenton Family Assault Vehicle, AKA the RV. I snatched the flashlight from a protesting Maddie, made my way to and out the front door. I slammed the door closed behind me, dropped the flashlight so that Maddie could retrieve it, jumped into the RV, started her up, then I began to drive like my life depended on it. I could hear Maddie yelling at me from the porch, asking me what I thought I was doing and where I thought I was going. I would have guessed that the answer was obvious. I was going to save my son. I was going to prove to everyone and myself that I wasn't a failure. I could capture a ghost if I had too. I captured Danny after all! Then again…that's what he had told me, but I'm not sure now if he was being honest…

More to the point, hadn't the kids run off without any weapons? Well, the FFAV had plenty of weapons like the bazooka that Sam used to use before I made her the Fenton Pistols. There was also plenty of Fenton Thermoses in the back as well. I think the Jack-O-Nine Tails was back there as well.

I frowned as I began to pick up speed. There was no-one on the streets which made avoiding people and cars easy. Finally reaching my destination, I stepped out of the car while holding the Fenton Peeler in my hand. I pressed the button on the gun looking device, and in seconds it extended around me until it had me covered in this white armor.

_"Alright ghosts, Jack Fenton is on the scene!"_ I yelled in hopes of getting some spooks' attention.

After getting nothing, I narrowed my eyes before I turned my attention skyward. The first thing I see is that ghost with the flaming white hair and flapping cape. He's just hovering there with his arms dangling at his sides. I don't see Danny or the others anywhere. Maybe they're inside? Maybe now's my chance. If I can catch this ghost that had Danny, as girl Danny put it, 'shaking in his HAZMAT suit', then it would prove that I'm not a moron.

I pointed my arm up towards the fusion of Vlad and Danny and took aim with the Fenton Peeler. Right when I was about to shoot, that darn ghost looked in my direction. His cold red eyes made me shutter and take a step back. I had a feeling in my gut that what I was about to do was bad, but I didn't listen. Listening to my gut gave me a fifty percent chance of success. Half the time listening to my gut was a good idea, and the other half it wasn't so good.

_"Alright spook, eat this!"_ I shouted as I fired a concentrated blast of energy at the ghost.

The ghost merely stood there and my blast dissipated before it even touched him. Of course, I wasn't sure what that meant so I fired again and again with the same effect. I lowered my arm and growled. The blast wasn't making it anywhere near the ghost.

_"Maybe I'm not close enough," _I thought as I began to move closer. I could feel the ghost watching me as I progressed forward.

When I felt that I was close enough, I began to take aim and then I fired thinking that it would actually connect with the ghost. It didn't. It only dissipated again.

_"Blast!" _I snarled while momentarily taking my eyes off the ghost. It was then that I felt my body jerk. The pain didn't register yet.

I turned around and noticed that the ghost had moved; he was hovering a few feet above me now. I blinked, frowned and then fired again, but the ghost merely knocked the blast away with the flick of his wrist. I knew that that I was in trouble.

_"No ghost is gonna get the best of Jack Fenton,"_ I protested before I tried to fire again.

The ghost just knocked the blast away once more, and slowly descended upon me until it was only a few inches away. I could feel his cold red eyes boring into my soul. I flinched as his hands began to glow a vibrant green. I knew what he was about to do. He was about to attack! I only had moments to do something, so I did what any self-respecting ghost hunter would do.

_"AHHHHHHHHH!" _I screamed as I rolled out of the way, and not a moment too soon.

The blast missed me, and I was really glad that it had considering it left a huge crater in its wake. I ran behind a dumpster to catch my breath before I poked my head out to see if the ghost had chased me or not. I had to admit that I was surprised to see him hovering in front of the building once again like nothing had happened.

_"What the fudge is going on?"_ I asked myself before I tried to peer into one of the windows of the power plant.

_"Where are the kids? Did that ghost already get to them? No, that can't be it! Not my Danny and his friends!"_

I narrowed my eyes and watched the building, the ghost, and the ghost shield as it finally went down completely. I gulped. If the town's ghost shield was down along with our ghost shield back home, plus whatever shield I noticed guarding the power plant…well, that wasn't a good sign.

The evil version of Danny and Vlad began to descend until he landed on the ground. His cape bellowed behind him even though there was barely any wind. A few seconds later, Alucard appeared from the door with a grin on his face. He stood beside Dark Phantom, as Danny called him, then stood there and looked around. His appearance was visible thanks to, I guess, the fact that he must have really had to work to shut off the power.

His robe was opened enough for me to take note of it not being an actual robe, but a lab coat that was much too big for him. The clothes that he wore underneath them seemed to be the same ones that Vlad had one back in his college days except that his shirt was a white hoodie which was probably why his lab coat looked like a robe. He used the hood of his top to cover his face while he tightly closed the lab coat around him. He even sport grey/white sneakers! His hair was the same black with grey streak that it had been when I had seen him back at the house. His eyes seemed to dance in triumph. He had succeeded in his plans, obviously, and was now looking for anyone who would oppose him.

The entire time I'm wondering where the kids are and what was going to happen next. I hadn't realized that there was someone behind me.

_"Mr. Fenton?"_ asked a female voice.

I turned around quickly, aiming the Fenton Peeler at the owner of the voice. She flinched hard and put her hands up defensively before saying, _"Don't shoot!"_

I lowered my arm and took in the sight of the female Danny. She wasn't in her ghost form, and her hoody was torn and dirty. Her face had a few cuts on them, and her hair was drenched with…well, whatever was inside the dumpster I'm guessing, since that was where she seemed to have come from. She smelled bad too.

I watched as she lowered her arms and looked at me. She then looked around as though she was waitinf for someone to attack or something.

_"Where're the others?"_ I asked as she leaned against the dumpster for support.

It took her a few minutes for to respond, and when she did it was just with a shrug of her shoulders.

[==Character Transition==]

**_**Dani**_**

There was no way the two of us could get passed this ghost/people shield. Dark Phantom was hovering on the outside of it though, most likely to scare us away despite the fact that we couldn't get passed the shield. In a way, it was quite the confidence booster. Alucard was taking special precautions to make sure that we didn't get to him. Danny, on the other hand, looked as though he wasn't sure why he was there. Occasionally he would hover backwards before moving forward again. I knew he was nervous and unsure. He wanted to get rid of this ghost, but he didn't want to attack it since it wasn't moving. Besides, we had neglected to bring our weapons with us. We all rushed out to stop Danny, but ended up here confronting this Dark Phantom.

I hovered silently while sizing up the guy in front of us. In all honesty, I was confused. Danny had said that this guy was the fusion of both him and Vlad, at least their ghost halves, so where did the flaming hair come from? Yeah, I know it wasn't the right time to be thinking about hair and accessories, but I couldn't help myself. I wanted to ask Danny, but before I could he was back on the ground talking with Sam and Tucker.

I hovered away from Dark Phantom and watched as Danny gave Sam the Time Scepter. I had assumed that the only reason he brought it with him was because he was in such a rush that he didn't bother to put it down. Then I figured that maybe he would try to use it. Since this Clockwork guy had been the Master of Time, his scepter should have been able to stop time and stuff, right? Danny hadn't even tried to use it though. He just held on to it for, I don't know, a confidence boost? Maybe he was hoping that Clockwork would appear, say that it had been a joke and would proceed to help us out of this mess.

With a sigh, I watched Danny fly back up, full speed, and head straight for Dark Phantom. I closed my eyes as he shot passed me, but opened them when I heard Danny grunt. I looked towards the two older Phantoms and watched as Dark Phantom held Danny by his fist, then punched him repeatedly in the stomach.

_"Danny!" _I yelled as I flew forward to assist my 'cousin'.

Before I could fire an ecto-blast, Dark Phantom had chucked Danny in my direction. I quickly turned intangible allowing Danny to fly harmlessly through me. Danny, on the other hand, collided with a building. I didn't have to turn around to know that. Instead, I began firing my own concentrated blasts of ectoplasm. The Phantom just blocked my attacks before sending a flurry of attacks my way. I flew out of the way, doing barrel rolls to dodge and turning intangible to allow some of the blasts to fly through me. The other ghost just kept firing though, leaving me no chance for an opening.

That wasn't my intention though. I was just the distraction. As I dodged, Danny came up on Dark Phantom's blind side and began to fire his ice attacks at the ghost. This momentarily caused Dark Phantom to stop firing at me, which was a big mistake on his part. I turned intangible and flew towards the Phantom while quickly rotating my body like a drill. I shot a ray at the ghost which also seemed to rotate. It was a direct hit, or at least I thought it was. I turned tangible once more and watched as Danny flew beside me.

_"What was that?"_ he asked me with a smile tugging at his lips.

_"I haven't thought up a name for it yet,"_ I answered while looking at him.

That was a big mistake, taking our eyes off of Dark Phantom, I meant. The evil ghost multiplied so there were ten of them. Five of them began to shoot at me while the other five began to shoot at Danny. I was taken completely off guard, but Danny managed to throw up a shield just in time to protect himself. I shouldn't say that I was surprised. Danny knew what this ghost was capable of. I, on the other hand, should have been a lot more vigilant. To me, Dark Phantom was a new opponent which meant that I should have been focused on him more than I was.

The last thing I remembered was being sent flying. I had gone intangible so that I wouldn't hit anything, but it did last too long, and I ended up hitting a wall then falling until I landed in something wet and smelly. I must have blacked out because when I woke up, I heard Mr. Fenton shouting and screaming. At first, I couldn't move, but when I got myself free Mr. Fenton was near the dumpster I had been hiding in.

I heard him ask me where the others were, but all I could do was shrug. I was the one that went flying out of control with my eyes closed. I had no idea which way was up or down let alone which direction the others were in. Obviously I couldn't answer him. Instead, I looked up and peaked out of our hiding place. Dark Phantom was now standing beside Al who didn't seem to care that he was no longer concealed by his 'robe', and was wearing a triumphant grin on his face. The next thing I knew, Al had put his hood back over his head and part of his face, and a dark charcoal colored orb emerged from his torso, expanded into a ring that went around his body marking the beginning of his ghostly transformation, and split off into two one of which went upwards while the other went downward.

When the two rings vanished, Al's 'robe' and hood were still over him, but beneath that I could see the new wear he was sporting. It was a dark grey, skin leotard with a black sash around the waist. Where the seams on the side of the arms and legs would be, there was a trail of thick, blood red material that looked as though it had to have little specks of something that made it shine when it hit the light a certain way. From the middle of his chest, I think, down to somewhere beneath the sash was the same design, only it was gold and not red. He wore black gloves and his footwear were black boots that matched the sash and reached just below his knees. From where I was standing, that was pretty much all I could see.

Soon after this transformation, the two ghosts took off in our direction only they weren't coming for us. They were headed towards the OUTSIDE of town. I shuddered. If they were retreating for the time being….well, what were they planning?

The two of us crouched down as the ghosts flew by us. That was when Mr. Fenton whispered to me.

_"We have to find the others, now."_

_"R-right."_

As Mr. Fenton ran from out of his hiding place, I transformed back into my ghost form. I then began to hover behind him. I didn't exactly want to leave him to search on his own, but I wanted to get a bird's eye view. I had a feeling that Danny was alright. Sam and Tucker would be with him after all. Then again…

Mr. Fenton ducked, rolled and hid behind everything that he could. It was like he thought he was in some sort of spy movie. I couldn't help but giggle at him. He didn't seem to hear me, or if he did he ignored me. He was determined to find Danny, Sam and Tucker in the most ridiculous way possible, so I wasn't going to stop him.

It would be very entertaining to watch after all, and I needed a little pick-me-up.

After about fifteen minutes of futile searching, we finally came across Tucker who had been looking for me.

_"Dani! Mr. Fenton? What are you doing here?"_

I smiled at Tucker before looking at Mr. Fenton who was still wearing that armor thing of his.

_"I came to help,"_ stated Mr. Fenton as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

I saw Tucker flinch at Mr. Fenton's tone before he covered his nose.

_"Geez Dani, can't you go intangible and get some of that stink off?"_

I frowned at Tucker before trying what he suggested. The only thing that happened was that the excess water made a puddle at my feet leaving me effectively dry, but the smell lingered.

_"Eesh,"_ he said while moving away from me.

_"Where's Danny?"_ I nearly growled at Tucker who threw up his hands defensively.

_"Well, when you got sent flying I sort of took off after you. Sam is most likely with Danny, so I've no clue."_

I turned my attention to Mr. Fenton who had a frown on his face. This was his son that we were talking about after all. Suddenly, Mr. Fenton turned to me. The look he gave me made me want to curl into a tight little ball.

_"The two of you have the same strands of DNA and ghost powers. Can you lock on to his ecto-signature?"_

I looked at Mr. Fenton with an unsure expression on my face while Tucker's face seemed to brighten.

_"That's not a bad idea, Mr. Fenton. Do you think you could do it, Dani?"_

_"I don't know, Tuck, I've never really tried to before. I'm not sure if I know how."_

Tucker looked at me and began to think. Mr. Fenton just started pacing around.

_"Well," _started Tucker while pulling out his PDA, _"like Mr. Fenton says, you guys have the same DNA…most likely near an identical molecular code and ghost powers. If you could utilize your Ghost Sense, you could probably track each other. Heck, you could probably speak telepathically to one another."_

Tucker seemed to chuckle at the telepathic communication comment he made, but I was barely listening. Tucker had said, more or less, that if I focused on trying to find a specific ecto-signature, my Ghost Sense would pick it up, and since Danny's signature was so close to mine, all needed to do was look for a signature that was near identical to my own…

I closed my eyes and began to focus on finding Danny. He couldn't have left Amity Park, and he couldn't be too far from where we were, unless he was knocked for miles. If that was the case, then Sam would be with Tucker because it would be pointless to track Danny on foot by herself. The most logically thing would have been to find me first so that I could use my powers to search.

Slowly I opened my eyes as a small blue mist wafted from my lips. It wasn't caused by Danny though.

_"I AM THE BOX GHOST!"_ cried a chubby blue ghost with a skull cap, blue overalls over a white shirt and black boots.

He looked like a worker out of some sort of warehouse, probably why he had a thing for containers ranging from square to cylindrical. It didn't matter though. His presence, like with everyone else, annoyed and so, I shot a warning beam at him. He quieted down, looked at me, I think he even sniffed me, then gave a loud, **_BEWARE, _**before vanishing. My eyes flash for a moment before I close my eyes to try to concentrate on finding Danny again.

One of the reasons why I was even trying this idea was because…well, maybe if I succeeded Mr. Fenton would like me. It's no secret that he doesn't care for me because of what I am. It's not just that I'm a clone of his youngest child, but that I'm a product of his ex-best friend's hatred. I was created out of rage, spite and jealousy. I felt that every time Mr. Fenton looks at me, he doesn't see Danielle the Friendly Ghost, but Vlad Plasmius, and that's far from what I want. I don't know why, but I feel like I just needed his acceptance. It was one of the many reasons that I didn't linger so much in Amity Park. To many bad memories, and no-one, other than Danny to turn to, at least at the time.

Now I have Mrs. Fenton, who I occasionally call 'Mom' from time to time, under her prompting, Jazz, Sam, Tucker and of course, Danny.

Concentrating as hard as I can, I started to feel something tugging at the core which lies in the pit of my stomach. It's warm and familiar, but at the same it's different. Right when I was about to tap into it, I heard Mr. Fenton's voice.

_"Hang on a sec! I have another idea. I brought the RV! It has a radar right there in the middle of the dashboard that can track Danny's unique signature!"_

With that, Mr. Fenton ran off to, I guess, wherever he parked the RV. I looked to Tucker who had an identical look of disbelief on his face as I did.

_"Why didn't he think of that sooner," _asked Tucker with a shake of his head.

I shrugged off Tucker's question before the two of us began following Mr. Fenton back to the RV, or at least what seemed to be left of it.

TBC


	5. Memories

Chapter Five: Memories

_****DF****_

_*Flashback*_

"_**Mom…Dad, I know this is a lot to take in, but at least the part that involves me having to show you who I really am is over with," **_**I remarked with forced humor. **

**My parents just continued to smile at me, although I wasn't sure why. They, along with the entire world, just learned that I was Danny Phantom…again. Slowly their smiles faded and they raced to hug me while everyone cheered. It was…a great feeling to say the least, but I knew once the shock and excitement cleared up that there would be anger, groundings, tears and the explanations. **

**I was right. Not even a day later, my parents were determined to get me to tell them everything. Jazz had managed to convince our parents to give me time to figure out what to say and how to say it. Of course I used this to my advantage, but after a week of not talking…well, they had managed to corner me. It wasn't that hard considering that my dad merely blocked my escape route and my parents had managed to turn on the house's defense systems. Of course, the weapons were set but still. Not only that, but turning intangible wasn't an option either. They had everything planned out.**

"_**Okay, I get it. We'll talk,"**_** I spoke up in defeat as my dad carried me into the living room with my mom trailing behind us.**

**My dad set me down on the couch and then he and my mother stared at me expectantly, not bothering to sit themselves. As many times as they figured out my secret, you'd think I'd be used to the feeling of nervous butterflies fluttering in my stomach. Of course, I never had to really explain to them in depth. It was…for lack of better words, terrifying.**

"_**It happened on the day the Ghost Portal started working, at least, I'm 99.9% sure."**_

**I rubbed the back of my head nervously as my parents continued to stare at me. I could see the look of realization in my mother's eyes, but she said nothing. It was clear that she was going to let me speak at my own pace. I took a deep and calming breath before I continued.**

"_**Sam, Tucker and I had come here after school. Jazz was in the kitchen reading one of her books and well, Sam and Tucker wanted to check out the lab. I knew that in order to do that we would have to either get Jazz out of the kitchen, or we'd have to sneak down there. Sneaking we knew wasn't an option since Jazz was like a hawk."**_

**I smiled a bit at the thought of Jazz before I shook my head.**

"_**We thought that we could convince her to leave the kitchen, so we tried asking her if studying in her room would be a more suitable choice since she'd be a lot more comfortable there. She just shrugged us off. After a few more minutes of trying, we decided to see if we could wait her out in my room. Once we got to my room we decided to do our homework instead. For about a half an hour, we worked on our group project. It was right when we were almost done that Jazz called up to us saying that she was going to go to the library to get another book. She had asked us if we wanted anything. We told her no, and so she left. Sam, Tucker and I looked out the window and watched as she got into her car and pulled out of the driveway. It was then that we decided that now would be our best chance to enter the lab."**_

**My mother and father's expression both turned to one of their disapproving glares, and I felt as though I had shrunk beneath their gazes. Still, they kept quiet, although I knew they both wanted to reprimand me. Clearly they knew that I wanted to get this off my chest, and maybe they felt that with the least amount of interruptions it would get done faster. They were right after all, but I still couldn't help but feel more anxious with them not saying anything. They just…they were just gawking at me after all. With nothing more than a sigh, I pressed on.**

"_**The three of us entered the lab, and Tucker gasped at all the 'cool' inventions that he saw. According to him, he had died and gone to techo-geek heaven. Anyway, Sam and I, made our way to the dormant Ghost Portal while Tucker trailed behind to get a real good look at everything. After he made his way over to us, Sam pulled out her camera and began to snap some pictures. She wanted to get some of me near the portal, and well, I thought that it wouldn't hurt. Then she decided that she wanted me to dress up in one of the HAZMAT suits. I didn't think too much of that either. It was after that and the snapping of a few more pics that she decided that I should go into the portal.**_

_**I was skeptical at first 'cause I know how you guys said that everything in the lab could be dangerous especially when they were malfunctioning. I didn't know if the portal didn't work 'work' or if it was just plainly malfunctioning so I didn't really want to go in. Still, Sam managed to convince me to go inside and get a look at it. I did so, reluctantly at first, but then I felt a little more confident and made my way inside. I had no idea that there was a switch on the inside of it, and…well, I accidentally pressed it, and well…the portal started working."**_

**My mom and dad both gasped when they realized why their portal hadn't been working. They had the portal plugged into an outlet, but they neglected to turn it on from the inside. That was why it hadn't worked. At the same time though, they must have figured that that was when half of me 'died'. I saw the tears well up in my mom's eyes, and before I could tell her anything about me being fine, she wrapped her arms around me so tightly that I thought all the air in my lungs would be released. Then, to make matters worse, my dad hugged us both, making spots appear in my vision.**

"_**Mom, dad, I'm fine…unless…you count…me currently lacking oxygen."**_

**My parents instantly released me before my mom wiped her eyes. She was hurting, I could tell. They blamed themselves for the accident even though it wasn't their fault. It was my fault. I had been the one to walk into the Ghost Portal and hit the stupid button that would change my life forever. I could have always told Sam and Tucker no, but I hadn't and well…I was stuck with ghost powers.**

"_**Oh sweet heart,"**_** my mom started while my dad held her close. **

**I smiled guiltily at her. It wasn't my intention to make my parents feel bad, but I knew that I had. It wasn't just the fact that I had broken their rules about being in the lab without parental supervision, the fact that I could have hurt my friends, or the fact that I could have been killed, but it was also about the secret in itself. **

**My mother's expression changed a bit and I cringed. Now she was mad.**

"_**You could have been killed! We could have KILLED you! Why didn't you tell us?! We could have helped you! We could have avoided at least some of the injuries we know you've sustained as Danny Phantom! Why would you hide this from us! It's not like we were going to just—"**_

"_**-rip you apart molecule by molecule,"**_ **my dad finished, a look of realization reflecting in his eyes only to be replaced by guilt. **

**I lowered my gaze, unable to look at either of my parents. I knew they were thinking the same thing. They would blame themselves for my secret as well.**

"_**I'll admit that I was scared that you wouldn't believe me at first. I mean, I know a few people who would swear up and down that Danny Phantom was overshadowing me. I know that there are some people who, if they did feel that I was being overshadowed, would shoot first and question later thinking that Danny **_**Fenton **_**wouldn't be harmed…that's the reason why I didn't say anything, but I already knew that I could trust the two of you. I mean, you've shown me on more than one occasion that you're more than trustworthy. I didn't tell you because…well, because of me having enemies. Some of them know who I am while others don't, and I just wanted to keep it that way because there are some specters and even people who wouldn't care if I was half ghost or half human. They'd attack me where I was the most vulnerable and that means…well, my family."**_

**I looked at my parents, hoping that they would understand what I was getting at. My dad flashed me a small smile, but my mom's expression was neutral, despite the unshed tears that were threatening to spill over.**

"_**I understand now how and why Sam and Tucker knew since they were with you when it happened," **_**said my mother while looking thoughtfully at me, **_**"but Jazz knew too."**_

**I shook my head at my mother while waving my hands at her frantically. I didn't want Jazz to get in to much trouble.**

"_**She didn't know until a Spirit Week at school. I didn't want her involved just like I didn't want you two involved. Heck, I didn't even want Sam and Tucker involved but I have to admit that I'm glad they were, otherwise I would have driven myself crazy. Having a big secret is a big responsibility…and I don't think I would have been able to handle it alone. Anyway, Jazz hadn't exactly told me she knew my secret until after I had confronted her about it which had been several months later. I had, uh, evidence that said she knew my secret. She told me then how and when she figured it out. One of the guidance counselors had been a ghost, er, let me rephrase that."**_

**I rubbed my head at the looks on my parents' faces when I said what I did.**

"_**There was a ghost masquerading as a guidance counselor during Spirit Week. She was supposed to help with stress or something, and well, instead of helping, she made the kids more miserable so that her and her shape shifting ghost assistant could feed off of their misery. Anyway, she had this whole elaborate plan to get as much misery off the student body as possible by wasting the speaker at the Spirit Week assembly. There were these dominoes that were set up so when you knock them down they spelled out 'Spirit' or something, and when the last domino fell it was supposed to activate the Spirit Sparklers, ya know, the fireworks or whatever, but instead of the fireworks, they were going to totally vaporize the speaker…who just so happened to be Jazz."**_

**My mom gasped while my father frowned. He didn't like where that conversation was going. I lowered my head before stating, **_**"I managed to save Jazz and Spirit Week was a success, according to what Mr. Lancer told her. Anyway, it was a little bit before that assembly that Jazz figured out my secret. The shape shifting assistant was causing trouble, so I pretended to throw a fit a Jazz, 'cause she had been on my case about my grades and stuff, so it gave me the perfect excuse to step out. When I did, I transformed into Danny **_**Phantom**_** and flew off to save the day. That was when she realized it. She had seen me transform."**_

**I sighed as I explained all of that then looked expectantly at my parents. I could see that they were taking in every bit of information that I had given them. I rubbed my neck nervously before realizing how drained I felt. Not only was I drained, but I felt as though some of my stress had been relieved. Maybe all that 'talking out your feelings' junk that Jazz spouted wasn't such 'junk' at all. I was feeling better, a tad worried, but better. **

**I let my shoulders slump a bit before my dad began to speak. I instantly cringed at the topic.**

"_**When did you learn about Vlad?"**_

**His tone was…dark and uncharacteristic for him, but I knew he had felt betrayed. I momentarily forgot how to speak as I looked at my dad, but then I found my voice and answered him.**

"_**During th-the college reunion,"**_** I answered timidly, unsure of how much more I should say. **

**I remained quiet while my head was bowed slightly so that I couldn't see the expression on their faces. After a few minutes of awkward silence, I looked up to see that my dad was staring at me curiously.**

"_**What?"**_ **I asked, unsure of why he was looking at me like I was some sort of sacred text that he was trying to decipher.**

"_**What?"**_** he repeated, although there was anger underlining his tone. I knew he was trying not to yell at me, but at the same time his behavior confused me, at least until I realized he wanted me to explain Vlad. Before I had time to say anything about that he continued.**

"_**My ex-best friend was your arch-nemesis, and you're asking me **_**what**_**!?" **_** he stated, making me cringe.**

**My mother put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down, but that didn't seem to help. In fact, he kept going.**

"_**In college, Vladdie and I were inseparable. We weren't just best friends, son. Vladdie and I were brothers, just like you and Tucker."**_

**I had to keep myself from wincing. I hadn't really realized that dad and the fruit loop were that close. I could sort of understand a bit where Vlad was coming from then. I mean, Vlad had said that he and dad had been close, but I didn't truly understand. Now with my dad comparing his relationship with Vlad to that of mine and Tucker's…well, let's just say that if Sam and Tucker started dating when Tucker knew that I had liked Sam, I'd be pretty teed off too…but that was just it. From what I understood…my dad didn't know that Vlad had a thing for mom. Ew, by the way, and even if he had, my mom had eyes for my dad anyway. I mean…I saw it firsthand.**

"_**Son, I just gotta know what happened to Vladdie. I need you to tell me what you know. Please."**_

**I stopped my musings when I heard my dad's almost pleading tone. I knew then that I had no choice but to tell him and my mom what I had endured and what I knew about their former college friend.**

"_**W-well, like I said, it happened during the college reunion that he had been hosting. I hadn't exactly known what was going on at first, although I did notice the small things like how when we first got there, Vlad purposely left dad outside and then started flirting with mom."**_

**My dad said nothing to that, but I did see the slight confused then angry look in his eyes.**

"_**Anyway, the guy seemed normal enough though he was a little obsessed with the Packers. He was pretty cool, and well he was your friend, so whatever weirdness that I noticed wasn't really considered a red flag to me. Anyway, that night when everyone was sleep, my Ghost Sense, which is that blue mist that comes from my mouth but is also a product of my ghost side's icy powers, went off. I decided to take a look around and I noticed that dad was looking for the bathroom but these three ghost vultures that I had tangled with a couple of nights ago before we left which resulted in me missing curfew, were flying after him. I still didn't think too much of it because they had been looking for dad **_**before**_** the reunion. I just thought that they had followed us there."**_

**My parents both nodded their heads, most likely recalling the curfew that I was talking about. I'm sure me being Danny Phantom made them realize why I had missed so many of my curfews in the past. Anyway, I just continued with my story.**

"_**I pulled dad through the floor so that the ghost vultures would get him, then I flew him to the bathroom. I left after that and confronted the vultures. At first, I thought I had scared them off, but I was wrong. There was another ghost behind me, Vlad Plasmius or as you guys so often called him, The Wisconsin Ghost. I had no idea that he was Vlad **_**Masters**_** and according to him, he had no real idea that I was Danny Fenton, at least not until he beat me up to the point that I couldn't sustain my ghostly form and reverted back."**_

**My dad clenched his fist before he lowered his head sadly. **

"_**When I woke up, I was back in the guest room. Vlad was there and fed me this crap about finding me and all that. He told me it was fine and I was able to get some sleep after that. The next night at the reunion, he asked me to get something out of his lab for him. It was supposed to be some sort of present for dad, but instead it was a trap for me. There were two ghosts there that I had first fought when I got my powers along with a third who had decided that I was 'worthy prey'. In other words he was a hunter. Uh, so anyway, I was trapped and unable to use my powers thanks to some invention. It was then that Vlad came in to stop the hunter ghost from killing me. He then proceeded with the typical villain monologue. He told me how he sent those ghosts along with some others to test dad's skills, I guess at ghost hunting. That was how he had learned about Danny Phantom, but he hadn't known that **_**I **_**was Danny Phantom. **_

_**Now that he knew, he wanted to keep me away from the party while he tried to kill dad. He had said that it was dad's fault that there were now two ghost hybrids in existence. That was when he showed me who he was. I tried to get out, but I couldn't. I demanded him to release me, but he refused. Instead he told me that he had his powers for twenty years and how he used them for his own selfish needs. He even had the audacity to tell me that if I renounced dad as…well, my dad, then he would teach me to use my powers."**_

**Both my mom and dad gasped. My mother was horrified whereas my dad was angry. I swear if I didn't know any better, I say my dad was the Incredible Hulk. I quickly put my hand on his arm and forced him to look at me. I could feel him shaking slightly, but now that I had started, I wasn't about to stop. I had to tell him the truth. I couldn't lie to them, no matter how much I wanted to. They both deserved to know the truth, especially after everything I had put them through.**

"_**Of course I totally refused to renounce dad. I even insulted Vlad, calling him one serious crazed up fruit loop. He didn't like that and told me that when he got dad out of the way that we would see what would happen next. Unable to do anything thanks to my current predicament, I could only watch as he left me in his lab. He would have gotten away with it too if it wasn't for the fact that the ghost of the Dairy King had come along and helped me. It was then that I learned that not all ghosts were evil. Anyway, once I was free, I flew out of the lab and confronted Vlad in the main room although…well, dad…I'm sure you remember…some things…"**_

**My dad nodded slowly. Vlad had possessed him, and though he didn't remember everything, I knew that he remembered bits and pieces. Still, it was best to tell them both everything so there wouldn't be too many questions later.**

"_**At the time, Vlad was possessing Dad. I confronted him…well, I actually flew into dad and shoved Vlad out. We both landed in a different room where we then began to fight each other. Of course he pretty much kicked my butt, but he did try to convince me to join him. I then threatened to tell his secret. He countered by threatening to tell my secret. I was really stuck. That was when mom came in with the RV, and Vlad had taken her. That was when I uh, took control of the RV."**_

**I looked towards my mother who was wearing a neutral expression on her face.**

"_**I fired the gun thingy at Vlad. The first attack, an ectoplasmic beam, he managed to deflected, the second was ectoplasmic lightning which he fazed through, but the third, which was the goo was a direct hit. He hadn't meant too, but he dropped mom when he got hit. I had been so afraid that I had no idea what to do, at least at first. That was when I acted on instinct. I possessed dad, then caught mom then used him to catch you, mom."**_

**My mom frowned at that, but she still didn't say anything. She knew that I wasn't done. **

"_**Still possessing dad, I went up and grabbed Vlad out the goo and spoke to him, telling him that I would expose us both right then and there unless Vlad agreed to a truce. Of course Vlad thought that I was bluffing, but I assured him that I wasn't. I told him that you guys would accept me. I then hit home when I asked him what he thought mom would think of him."**_

**I instinctively flinched when my mom's lips curved downward into an unhappy frown.**

"_**He agreed to the truce and…well, his whole disappearing act at the party was the beginning of our truce. Of course, that didn't stop him from trying to convince me to join him. In fact, I think half the time he came to Amity Park was to bug me. Well, his becoming Mayor was to make my life miserable, but I guess to a certain extent I did deserve it. I mean, I had been pranking him—"**_

"_**Danny,"**_** my mom warned before I could continue. I laughed nervously before I rubbed my neck and looked to my dad. **

"_**We'll finish this later. For now, wash up for dinner," **_**said my mom while she rubbed my dad's back.**

**I nodded and got up from the couch before hugging both my parents. Mom hugged me back immediately, but my dad hesitated. I don't know if he was still thinking or if it was because was mad or even if it was because he hadn't really accepted me. I don't know, but it was really unnerving. After a few more moments, he returned the hugged and I felt myself smile.**

"_**I'm proud of you, son,"**_** said my dad with warmth in his voice. **_**"Don't ever think otherwise."**_

"_**I won't dad,"**_** I stated happily before I let them go and ran to the steps.**

**Once I was at the bottom of the steps that led to the upstairs bedroom, I immediately noticed a shadow. Of course Jazz had been spying, but there had been so much that I hadn't told her, and now she probably knew a bit more than she had moments ago. I sighed. I would have to deal with her later.**

_*Flashback*_

"_**Do I really have to go to school? I mean, I know how important education is…but I mean, what about…them?"**_** I asked as I pointed towards the**** crowd of teachers, students and parents that were standing in front of Casper High, watching the RV.**

**It was obvious that they were waiting for me and Jazz to exit the RV so they could start asking their questions or blame me for all the ghost related problems that had happened. I could see the football players, particularly Dash Baxter, the main kid that bullied me all the time. I was wary of him now more than ever. Dash was the biggest Danny Phantom 'Phan', at least the male fan. Paulina was the biggest female 'Phan'. Ironically she was standing beside Dash. Over to the side beside Star and Kwan, was Valerie Grey. Her expression was neutral. I really didn't want to confront my peers or my teachers, and I really didn't want an audience with anyone's parents. I heard my mom sigh, and then I felt Jazz place a comforting hand on my shoulder before she got out of the RV. The kids and some of the teachers surrounded Jazz and began to ask her questions or whatever. Jazz didn't seem too distracted by them because, unlike me, she hadn't missed school after my worldwide reveal. No doubt she was used to the unwanted attention.**

"_**Sweetie, I know this is hard for you, but you've already missed a week of school."**_

"_**Yeah, but it's for a good cause. I mean, what about the Guys in White. I'm still on their hit list, not to mention Valerie. I don't know if I can confront her. And then, there are so many Danny Phantom 'Phans' at school, half of which don't even like me, that I know it's going to be one of the worst days of my life. Can't I just be home schooled, get my GED or something else instead?"**_

"_**Son," **_**my dad cut in with a slight frown on his face.**

**I turned in his direction with the best pleading look on my face that I could muster.**

"_**We'll handle the Guys in White, and we know how good you are at avoiding your peers. You can do it."**_

**I sighed at my dad's response before turning back to my mom who had a slight amused yet worried look on his face. When she noticed that I was looking at her, she smiled and asked,**

"_**Why did you use air quotes when you said fan?"**_

**I rolled my eyes at the not-so-subtle subject change before hoisting my backpack on my shoulders. I knew I lost this argument.**

"_**Because the way it's spelled is with a P-H instead of with an F. They're Phantom 'Phans'."**_

**My mother chuckled as did my father, but I couldn't hear them over the sound of all the cheering I heard when I opened the RV's door and stepped out. I stood frozen in place when I heard the cheering, but then I smiled nervously before I heard someone yell for me to transform. I should have known to expect such a thing, but I hadn't, and I was slightly surprised. **

"_**Uh,"**_** I stammered before I began to look around for my sister, but she was buried in the crowd. I was alone and afraid.**

**At least, I was until I heard Mr. Lancer.**

"_**DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE**__**, PEOPLE. Give the boy some breathing room for Pete's sake."**_

**Hearing Mr. Lancer's voice caused everyone to part and make room for the balding, middle aged man. The tall teacher with the round belly walked to me with a defeated sigh and jerked his thumb towards the school's entrance.**

"_**Just because you are a celebrity now, Mr. Fenton doesn't mean that I will go easy on you, now get to class."**_

**I couldn't help the smile that graced my lips. Leave it to Mr. Lancer to remain the same. It was great seeing that he wasn't going to be like everyone else, and by that I mean that he wasn't going to try to get my autograph or ask me to transform or tell him about my ghost battles. At the same time though, it also meant he was only going to be so lenient with my skipping out on classes…**

"_**Thank you, Mr. Lancer,"**_** I said as I instantly rushed passed him despite protests from students, parents and teachers alike.**

**Mr. Lancer looked at the crowd before shouting, **_**"It's a school day people, I suggest you get to your designated areas!"**_

**Everyone seemed to disperse at Mr. Lancer's words. I reached the inside of the building and ran straight to my locker only to be intercepted by Sam and Tucker.**

"_**We thought you'd never make it inside,"**_** stated Tucker with a knowing grin while Sam jabbed him in the side with her elbow.**

"_**You won't believe who my knight in shining armor was,"**_** I stated with amusement before putting away my things and grabbing a few books.**

"_**Was it Jazz,"**_** asked Sam with mischief in her eyes. **

**I shook my head before walking over to Jazz's classroom which was right across the hall. I looked inside to see my sister sitting at her desk with her book in her hands.**

"_**Not if she's already in class,"**_ **I stated while turning to face the hall that held the double doors that led in and out of school.**

**The hallways were beginning to fill.**

"_**Was it Paulina?"**_** asked Tucker with a chuckle. **

**I just rolled my eyes while Sam tensed.**

"_**Worse, it was Mr. Lancer."**_

**Sam and Tucker both snorted, but ultimately began to laugh. I rolled my eyes before I heard people calling my name. Sam and Tucker instantly calmed down, although Sam rolled her eyes.**

"_**If only you had Ember's ability. You'd be the most powerful ghost on the planet."**_

"_**Yeah, and that wouldn't be an understatement. With everyone in the world chanting your name…"**_

"_**I get it guys,"**_** I said with a roll of my eyes before I began to back away towards my homeroom. **

**That was when I heard it.**

"_**FENTON TARINTINO!"**_

**I paused in my movements only to see an angry looking Dash heading my way. Sam and Tucker both stood there and waited for the bully to approach.**

"_**Hey uh, Dash, what's—"**_

**Before I even finished my sentence, I was hoisted into the air and shoved in a locker. I didn't even see the frowns on my friends' faces, or the ones on my so called 'Phans' faces. All I knew was that I had been shoved in a locker by Dash…which was shocking.**

**Sam opened the locker and I slid out and stared after Dash. He seemed…angrier than normal. Sam had her hands on her hips and was staring after the Football star angrily.**

"_**He has some nerve!"**_** she stated angrily which caused me to wrap my arm around her shoulder.**

"_**Honestly Sam, I'm sort of glad he shoved me in that locker."**_

**Both Sam and Tucker gave me perplexed looks before I explained myself.**

"_**It just means that my life won't totally change. My newfound fame and celebrity status won't go to my head as long as I have people who are going to keep me grounded. Speaking of which…I'm grounded for a month for entering the Ghost Portal unsupervised."**_

**Sam and Tucker both stared at me before they chuckled. It took us a few minutes to realize that we had been so wrapped up in our conversation that we were surrounded. People were still saying my name and asking me if I was alright and if I wanted them to deck Dash, but I ignored them. In fact, to me, they were just background noise. I took Sam and then Tucker's hand, turned intangible and walked through the crowd towards class.**

__

*Flashback*

"_**Darn it, that's the third ghost raccoon I've seen this week!"**_** I yelled when I noticed the slippery little creature disappear from my sight.**

"_**Yeah, and it's also the third one to escape,"**_** Sam pointed out which just made my frown deepen.**

**Yes, for whatever reason I has been up against three raccoons, two squirrels, a possum, and a rat. The raccoons were about the size of a German Shepard while the squirrels were the size of a Tabby cat. The rat was the typical size of a possum and…well, the possum was the same size as it would normally be. It was harder and harder to catch them, mainly because they were faster than me. Even with my ability to duplicate myself, I still couldn't catch them.**

"_**I just don't get where they keep coming from, or why they're after me!"**_

**Of course, at that instant, my Ghost Sense went off and a net wrapped itself around me.**

"_**The answer is very simple, Whelp."**_

"_**Skulker,"**_** I answered simply. **_**"I should have known."**_

**Seriously, I should have.**

"_**For once, whelp, this was not intentional."**_

"_**Like we're going to believe anything you have to say, Skulker,"**_** replied Sam as she untangled me from the net.**

**Skulker looked peeved at my release, but was unable to say anything about it since I blasted his body armor with a green blast of ecto-energy. He grunted in response before shaking his head and growling.**

"_**As much as I love playing cat and mouse with you, Skulker, I have other things to do like…I don't know, capturing YOUR pets."**_

**Skulker was about to retaliate when one of his little pets decided to bite my white glove and snatch it off my hand. It then started running…er, flying through the air with it.**

"_**HEY!"**_** I yelled while Skulker laughed. He was clearly amused by the antics.**

"_**Here's an idea. Help me catch your stupid animals, and I promise I won't shove you in the thermos and send you to the moon."**_

**Skulker abruptly stopped laughing. He knew that I could do exactly what I was threatening to do, but normally that wouldn't matter to him. He was all about the hunt after all. Still, his response was…quite unexpected.**

"_**Fine, whelp, but I shall have you know that I am not helping you. You are helping me. You see, the reason I was out here was to retrieve the creatures that my girlfriend released just to spite me."**_

"_**Girlfriend?"**_** asked Sam, a teasing smile on her lips.**

**I chuckled at the hunter's expense, but then sobered up with I saw Skulker's eyes flash brighter.**

"_**Alright fine, I'm helping **_**you**_**. Let's just get this over with."**_

"_**Danny…"**_** stated Sam, though I already knew what she was going to say.**

"_**Sam, we're just capturing them so they won't cause any more harm."**_

"_**I believe **_**you**_** Danny, but Skulker is no doubt going to use their pelt to make some sort of ghostly blanket or something!"**_

**Skulker didn't deny it. In fact, he smirked. I closed my eyes and shook my head. Even though they were dead, Sam still didn't want them caged or, well, used for pelts or trophies. **

__

*Flashback*

_****__**  
**__**"Clockwork?!"**_** I asked, startled by his appearance. **

**I knew for a fact that Clockwork had the power to see into many different futures, presents, and pasts, and so he would have been able to avoid injury to himself. If confronted, Clockwork could merely freeze or rewind time. I knew that first hand but this…**

"_**Clockwork!" **_**I repeated, not realizing that I had slid over to him on my knees.**

**The male ghost didn't seem to respond, and when I tried to pull him to his feet, he only leaned against me, his hood falling away from his head. I had never seen him without his hood, so I was startled to see he had long, flowing sea green hair, and instead of shifting from elderly, to an infant to a middle aged man, he was stuck between the ages of 18 – 25. I couldn't really tell.**

"_**Clockwork?" **_**I asked again, showing how worried I was. **

**He opened his red eyes which were as vibrant as usual, and he looked at me. His aquamarine blue skin was lighter than normal, and all the watches that he usually wore were no longer around his wrists and arms. Even the pendulum that was in the middle of his chest was no longer present.**

**Clockwork glanced at the floor and then at his Time Staff, which seemed to be fading from existence. I couldn't help but feel afraid. He looked back to me with a slight frown on his face.**

"_**Clockwork?" **_**I asked again, this time with ever growing anxiety. Would he just answer to his name, darn it?!**

"_**Danny…"**_** he finally said, sounding dazed instead of hurt and in pain. I mean, he was leaking ectoplasm from deep gashes after all.**

"_**I am afraid, I am no longer…Master of Time. I can no longer…see the time streams."**_

**Okay, now I was deathly afraid. **

"_**I am out of time, Danny, but I have something for you."**_

**The former ghost of time reached for his Time Staff, which I happily handed to him. Okay, maybe not happily, but you know what I meant. He took the staff in his hands, despite the fact that it was practically translucent, and he held it tightly. He closed his eyes, let out a deep breath and spoke one last time, **_**"Time out."**_

__

*Flashback End*

**That's not right!**

"_Clockwork,"_ I groaned as I felt cold tiles beneath my body along with some wet and sticky substance.

My eyes were closed shut, and my head was throbbing in pain. It took me a few minutes to realize that I could hear many concerned voices. One of those voices I was pretty sure I recognized, but…obviously it was hard to tell. I groaned again and shuddered as a chill went through my body then out of my mouth; my Ghost Sense.

I opened my eyes and looked around, but I didn't recognize anything thanks to the bright lights and the blurriness. My arm instantly shot upward over my face in order to shield my eyes from the blinding light. It took a few more minutes before I was able to hear the voices clearly. I heard Paulina sobbing, and I even heard Dash trying to get me to respond. Those were just two of the voices that I recognized among the crowd of people. When I finally opened my eyes I saw the reason why.

"_How did I get to the Nasty Burger?" _I exclaimed, seriously surprised.

The last thing I remembered was being bombarded by five different clones of Dark Phantom, and then being knocked through a building. Of course I had managed to go intangible, but it hadn't lasted long. I had cleared the building sure, but I had the bad luck of hitting one of Dark Phantom's copies. This copy had knocked me into another, and then another. I could barely defend myself but when I did, it was only because I had frozen four of the five. The fifth one, however, had turned intangible, grabbed me by my hair and tossed me before blasting me further away. I blacked out after that.

I looked around the Nasty Burger, taking notice of how a majority of kids from school were present. The football team was sitting across from the cheerleaders, even the school's band, choir, and techno geeks were there. No doubt they had been advised to stay inside thanks to the warning that had been issued.

I tried to sit up but Dash pushed me back down. I frowned at Dash but he just narrowed his eyes and held up his hand revealing something red and green. I instantly tensed and looked at myself. I was covered in both human blood and ghost blood.

"_I brought you here, Fenton-dra," _said Dash, answering my first question.

To say that I was shocked was an understatement.

"_You..why? I mean, you should have…been inside…"_ I responded carefully. I heard someone say something about it not mattering, but my attention was still on Dash.

"_Like he said, it doesn't matter, at least not anymore. Those shields are down."_

My entire body tensed at hearing that, before I realized something else. The bright light that I had seen before had come from several flashlights, one of which Dash was holding. No doubt he had held it close to my face to make sure I was alright or something.

"_The lights…"_ I started before I looked around.

"_Power's out everywhere,"_ answered Dash calmly which, in my opinion, was way too calm for Dash considering his fears of ghosts…among other things.

This time I sat myself up, turning intangible so Dash couldn't push me back down. I could tell that he was upset with me, probably even hated me, but I would have to deal with that later.

Dash was another person I had lied to in order to keep my secret. Dash always bullied me, and even after gaining my ghostly abilities he continued, but only because I let him. I couldn't have everyone knowing that I was Danny Phantom after all. That meant I had to endure the teasing and the swirlies and whatever, but it was worth it to keep myself and my peers safe. Even so, I could see that I had even hurt Dash, not that I would have cared a long time ago. Dash was hurt because, according to him, I looked down on him and made him think that I was something that I wasn't. I could have defended myself and kept him off my case. I could have even been popular, but I told him that…well, that I wasn't shallow. I didn't need popularity because in the end, all I needed were my family and my real friends who still consisted of Sam and Tucker.

Dash moved away from me and so I turned tangible. I winced when I realized just how much blood I had lost and why the floor was sticky. I figured the only reason I was even conscious now was because of my ghost side's quick healing factor. I turned my head slightly to look out of the window only to see that what was said was true. The town was truly unprotected.

I forced myself to my feet and walked over to the window to look out of it. Nothing seemed to be too damaged, but why? What did this mean?

"_Where's Sam_, _Tucker, and Danielle?"_ I asked suddenly, turning to face Dash and the others.

Dash just shrugged his shoulders showing that he didn't know and perhaps didn't care, but Kwan, Dash's right hand man of Asian origin spoke up.

"_Dash only brought you here, man. I went out looking for him, and he had you on his shoulder. There wasn't anyone else close by so—"_

"_Can it Kwan,"_ snapped Dash while he leaned up against the counter.

I nodded thanks in both Dash and Kwan's direction. This sort of reminded me of the first time that Dash and the others learned my secret. They had helped me, but they didn't really seem too pleased to know that I was Danny Phantom…well, except Paulina.

"_I have to go back out there. I need to find them."_

No-one said anything, although Dash did step forward. After hesitating for a moment, he snorted before rolling his eyes.

"_Foley has that stupid hand held computer thing, right? Can't you call it or somethin'?"_

"_N-no. I don't have my phone with me," _I answered carefully.

Dash turned towards the techno-geek table and shined his flash light in the eyes of an African American female with black glasses and long black hair that was tied in two ponytails that barely grazed her shoulders.

She wore a jacket that was obviously too big for her, but she didn't seem to care. The jacket was an emerald green with a giant gold star on the back of it. On the front were small gold stars, and her name was stitched right where her heart would be beneath it. She wore typical black colored jeans and had on shoes similar to mine except hers were black and white instead of red and white. She glared over at Dash with before taking off her glasses so she could rub her eyes.

"_There's a simpler way to get a person's attention, Baxter."_ She grumbled before putting her glasses back on.

"_Yeah well whatever, newbie. Anyway, anyone of ya got a way of contactin' Foley?"_

The girl, who had been going to Casper for a week now, rolled her eyes before pulling out a cheap looking cellphone. It was one of those phones that you'd see a little kid have. In other words, it's only function was to practically call out. There was no texting, there was no internet…there was just dialing the number.

Some of the kids at her table chuckled, but she just shrugged her shoulders before getting up and handing me her phone. She then looked at Dash. I ignored the exchange, but only because I wanted to quickly return the girl her phone. At first, I had no idea how to even work something so 'low tech' as Tucker would put it, but she seemed to realize this and took her phone.

"_It's not that hard. Seriously, we're in high school. How can you not know how to use something so simple? Or perhaps it's the simplicity of the object that has you baffled?"_

I could only stand there, unsure how to respond to her question. She sighed before shaking her head, but I could tell she was trying not to laugh. She looked at me before she smiled and handed me the phone back.

"_Now press the buttons with the numbers on it. The numbers that are on the buttons will show up on the screen to let you know which one's you've pushed. Once you've pushed the buttons in the correct sequence, press this green button that has a symbol for the phones receiver. That will cause the phone to dial the number that you've pressed."_

I could hear snickering and chuckling. Even Dash was enjoying watching me get teased.

"_Yeah thanks,"_ I grumbled before I took the phone. I didn't really have the means to send Tucker a text message on this phone since I was sure he was still using his PDA for everything. The next best person to call was Sam.

I pressed her number into the phone and waited for it to ring. Once it began to ring I began to shift where I stood. I was so worried about her, er, them that she, THEY consumed my every thought. Right when I was about to hang up the phone and fly off instead, Sam answered.

"_Who are you, and how'd you get this number?"_ she asked, clearly out of breath and with concern.

"_Geez Sam, is that how you answer ALL your calls?"_

"_Danny, where are you?! I saw you get knocked clean across—"_

"_Would you believe me if I said that I'm at the Naster Burger?"_

There was a pause on the other end of the phone before Sam exploded.

"_HOW IN THE WORLD DID YOU GET ALL THE WAY TO THE NASTY BURGER?! THAT'S PRETTY MUCH A MILE FROM WHERE WE WERE!"_

"_Would you believe that Dash brought me here?"_

Again there was silence on the other end before Sam started laughing. I was pretty sure that even Dash heard Sam's laughter because he was giving me this look. Then again, I had told Sam who it was that helped me out. Once Sam calmed down and sobered up, she began to speak again.

"_As long as you're okay Danny."_

"_Where's Tucker,"_ I asked since I hadn't heard him. _"And Dani?"_ I added as an afterthought.

"_You weren't the only one who got knocked out of ballpark. Danielle got sent flying too. Tucker went after her, so I've no idea where they are."_

I got quiet before I shook my head. Hopefully they were alright.

"_Sam, I don't have my phone so I can't get in touch with Tucker. Call him and tell him to meet at the Nasty Burger. Where are you, I'll come get you and—"_

"_Chill out Danny. I'll call Tucker and tell him to meet at the Nasty Burger. As for where I am…I'm fifteen minutes away from the Nasty Burger."_

"_Fifteen minutes?"_

"_Ten if I run."_

I couldn't help but smile. I knew she wasn't kidding either. Sam always excelled at sports but she didn't really play. She was the fastest, strongest and one of the smartest girls that I knew…

"_I'd feel better if you let me come get you."_

"_And I'd feel better when this whole crisis has been averted so…"_

"_Fine, I get it. Just be careful, will ya Sam?"_

"_Yes __**dad**__, I'll be careful."_

With that, Sam hung up the phone and I returned it to the female who had let me use it.

"_Thanks for that,"_ I said with a sheepish smile. She shrugged at me before putting the phone in her pocket.

__

*Flashback*

"_**Come on Tucker, seriously, what have you got to lose?"**_** I asked with a mischievous smile on my face.**

"_**Uh, how about my dignity? This girl is different, and she's sort of weird. I mean, not in a bad way or anything but…I mean…"**_

"_**Aw poor wittle Tucker,"**_** teased Sam while gripping hold of her spider shaped backpack.**

"_**Cut it out, Sam!"**_** countered Tucker defensively.**

**Suddenly, my Ghost Sense went off which caused me to look around the hallway of Casper High. I looked around, unable to spot the ghost that had my sense going off, but I did see someone who wasn't really watching where she was going while my best friend was also negligent of where he was walking.**

"_**Uh Tuck, watch—"**_

"—_**That goes double for—ah!"**_

"_**Oof."**_

**Tucker froze while Sam and I both winced and took a step back. There in front of the three of us was the new girl. Her twin pony tails slightly bounced when she and Tucker collided, plus the books she had been carrying had fallen to the floor along with her glasses.**

"_**I'm so sorry,"**_** shouted Tucker, his voice a bit high. **

**I wasn't paying attention anymore though. My ghost sense had gone off so there must have been some sort of ghost around. I was about to rush off when the female looked back up at us. She sighed helplessly before shaking her head and knelt down to gather her things.**

"_**It's…fine."**_

**She grabbed her glasses before fixing them back on her face. She then began to gather her books and papers. Tucker instantly got down and began to help her with her things.**

"_**No, it's really not. I should have been paying attention."**_

"_**Listen, I get it. You weren't paying attention and you're really sorry for it, so it's fine."**_

**She grabbed her things from Tucker before she stood to her feet. She then began to walk off towards her class. Tucker watched her go, almost longingly before he took a deep breath and yelled after her.**

"_**My name is Tucker Foley! Call me!"**_

**Whoever was in the hallway stopped what they were doing just to look at Tucker. Some of them tried to suppress their laughter since Tucker was not only friends with me, Danny Phantom, but also because he was the Mayor of Amity Park. Others didn't really care and laughed openly, Sam and myself include.**

"_**Smooth,"**_** respond Sam sarcastically, but Tucker wasn't paying attention to her. He was paying attention to the new girl who had also been one of the people who stopped what they were doing.**

**She turned around and looked at Tucker skeptically before putting one of her hands on her hip.**

"_**Terra Kinsper," **_**she stated with an amused smile before she began to walk off again.**

**Tucker's hunched shoulder's straightened significantly before he jumped in the air.**

"_**Guys, can you believe that?! I got her name!"**_

**There was another chorus of chuckles and laughter in the halls, at least until Ms. Tetslaff came out of her office which effectively cleared the halls.**

"_**Yeah, but she never gave you her number," **_**added Sam which seemed to cause Tucker to deflate a bit.**

"_**And you never gave her yours…"**_** I added, still not really 'there'. I was still trying to figure out why there hadn't been a ghost attack.**

__

*Flashback End*

"_Strange…"_ I mumbled as I turned to watch Terra sit back at the table with the techno-savvy kids.

Terra was one of the few kids that could fit in anywhere. If she chose to, she could be popular just by the way she was dressed…well, minus the ponytails. She wasn't exactly cheerleader material, but she had given them plenty advice on popular dances that they could incorporate into their cheers thanks to the fact that she watched a lot of viral videos and did a few surveys and such. When it came to the football team, however, she could throw and catch a football, but she had no idea what the plays were called, and had no idea what the difference between a touchdown and a homerun was. Still, she managed to get on some of the players good sides by helping them with their homework, or just watching them from the bleachers. Dash, on the other hand, found her to be both annoying and convenient.

Terra glanced back at me for a moment with a confused look on her face. She was one of the people who didn't really care if I was Danny Phantom. In fact, I had a feeling that she kind of didn't like me. I had managed to stay away from her, for the most part, but since Tucker liked her…well, we had to interact sometime, right?

__

*Flashback*

"_**You said that same thing about Valerie, Tucker. Remember how well that turned out?"**_** asked Sam while waving her hands in the air to get her point across.**

**Tucker just turned to me with this look him his eyes. Clearly he was hoping that I would understand where he was coming from. In all honesty, I agreed with the both of them. Tucker had said that Valerie was a good person and he was right. He had also said that he had liked her and well, this was the part where Sam was right. Tucker hadn't really liked her as girlfriend material like he had thought. That part was made clear when Valerie confronted him about my secret. She had been so angry that he had known my secret that she blew up at him. Tucker had told her where his loyalties had been especially since we all knew that Valerie was the Red Huntress and had been after Danny Phantom ever since this incident with a ghost dog who I call Cujo.**

"_**I wasn't exactly wrong,"**_** corrected Tucker while giving Sam and aggravated look.**

"_**Really?"**_** she exclaimed, not really caring how loud she was since the school day had ended and we were on our way out.**

"_**Yeah, really,"**_** said Tucker, his voice still rising a bit.**

"_**Guys,"**_** I tried, but I was completely ignored.**

"_**Sam, Val was still in love with Danny. She only broke it off with him because she didn't want him getting hurt because of her occupation. It was only natural for her to explode like that because the person she loved was the same person she was trying to kill. Besides, she may not have liked me to the extent that she liked Danny, but that doesn't mean my feelings for her were the same. It was only after she exclaimed how much she hated Danny that I realized that…she wasn't who I thought she was."**_

**Tucker sighed in disappointment before shaking his head. I, on the other hand, had been searching around the hallway. My ghost sense had gone off while they were arguing.**

"_**Are you alright Danny?" **_**asked a female voice that hadn't belonged to Sam. **

**The three of us were surprised to see that Terra had stopped and was speaking to me.**

"_**I'm fine,"**_** I answered before I looked around again. **_**"I just thought I sensed a ghost."**_

**Terra just smiled before shaking her head.**

"_**Mayor Tuck,"**_** said Terra with a smile. **_**"And hello Sam."**_

**Tucker smiled while Sam crossed her arms. Sam didn't really too much care for Terra. Terra didn't stay for too much longer after that. Instead she walked off with her Swiss Army backpack on her back.**

"_**My Ghost Sense has gotta be playing tricks on me. It's been going off for the entire week, and I've seen no sign of a ghost, and no ghost has tried to attack me."**_

"_**Maybe you have a guardian ghost,"**_** questioned Sam while ignoring Tucker.**

"_**I doubt it,"**_** I said with a shake of my head before grabbing Tucker and dragging him away with Sam following after us.**

__

*Flashback End*

I had a feeling that things were going become unnecessarily confusing, and the fact that Terra winked at me hadn't made my feelings any better...

I turned away from her before I looked out the window. My mind began to wander until it decided to stick to something, that something being Clockwork. How come Clockwork could no longer see the time streams? Why if he knew his fate, did he not change it? I know that tampering with the times streams is taboo, but certainly Clockwork could have changed his fate without repercussions?

I rubbed my head, ignoring the fact that I could feel Dash staring at me, and not just Dash. Paulina had stopped crying and was whispering something to Star. Of course I could barely hear them thanks to my own thoughts. Clockwork had taken the thermos that contained Dark Phantom, Alucard somehow got a hold of the thermos. No, wait, someone Alucard had learned something about Dark Phantom and how to find Clockwork's lair. Why hadn't Clockwork stopped it? How could he let that particular thermos out of his grasp, and how in the WORLD did Clockwork sustain such injuries that caused him to…

No, Clockwork can't be dead. Well, Clockwork already was dead…

"_I'm missing something, aren't I?"_I mumbled to myself.

Clockwork was already dead, so did that mean that he moved on or something? I mean, now that I think about it…not everyone came back as ghosts, did they? Some people probably moved on instead of loitering around the living. Obsessive ghosts tended to linger around because they have unfinished business or something, at least that's what I had read in my parents notes, and that's kind of what I believe.

Anyway, I get the feeling that something more is going on. In other words, I'm going to have to fight off my jerky evil self, Vlad's clone and figure out what Clockwork and the Observants are hiding from me.

TBC


	6. Screw Loose

**Author's Note: **It's chapter six and so I decided to say thank you to everyone who has decided to favor and read this story. It means a lot that I do have some readers. That being said, I'd really appreciate some sort of feedback. Let me know if you spot errors or if you have any ideas. Let me in on what you think is going on, although don't expect me to tell you what's happening or what's going to happen.

Let me know if the characters seem...well, in character, and tell me what you really think. If you think my writing sucks, lemme know. I'd probably be peeved, but a comment is a comment.

I'm gonna answer some questions that you may have had and probably haven't figured out yet. Some character transitions have a character's initials below them. That is so you won't have to try to figure out who's who. For example, SM is Sam Manson. TF is Tucker Foley, etc.

Anyway, that's pretty much all for now. Oh, actually, this chapter may be a little screwy towards the end. If so, please tell me. I made some last minute changes in this chapter, and despite me reading over it a good few times it still seems a little weird to me, but I can't figure out why. Maybe you guys, the Grammar Nazis, can help me out. eh?

* * *

Chapter Six: Screw Loose

_****Jack****_

"_My baby!"_ I yelled as I looked at what seemed to be left of the Fenton Family Assault Vehicle.

Tucker and the female Danny were behind me, no doubt watching as I circled the vehicle again and again. This was terrible! Someone or something had pretty much dismantled the vehicle here and there making it unsuitable for driving. Not only that but it seemed that the ghost weapons were missing as well.

"_How could this have happened?" _questioned Tucker as I turned to him. _"I mean, you guys always make sure to activate the security protocols, so no ghost or human should have been able to get to it without the keys."_

I couldn't help myself. I raised my hands in the air and groaned. Tucker was right. The only problem with him being right was the fact that it meant that I had forgotten to turn on the RV's security features. I had been so determined to find Danny and the others that I neglected our main means of transportation. I sighed before lowering my hands to my side. It's just another thing to add to my list of failures and negligence.

"_Oookay," _stated Tucker, though I wasn't paying him any attention.

I was looking over the RV to see if there was something I could do to at least get it mobile. Sure, the fact that the doors had been ripped off its hinges meant that it was probably a bad idea to even attempt it, but my son was out there somewhere. He was probably hurt or worse, completely dead. I turned to face Tucker and the female Danny, both were looking at me sadly. I turned away. I couldn't let the kids see me like this. I turned back to them with a smile on my face before jerking my thumb towards the assault vehicle.

"_Let's not let this deter us. We came here for the radar, right?"_

"_Yeah,"_ stated Tucker in a questioning format.

"_Well, the radar still seems to be functioning properly."_

"_Yeah, so now we can follow the radar to Danny while on foot."_

I frowned at Tucker's response, but he was right. What if Danny was really hurt and was hanging on to life by a ghostly thread? Going on foot was not an option despite the fact that it seemed to be the only one we had. The female Danny seemed pretty quiet, like she didn't want to really get involved with the conversation. I tried not to focus on her for to long. I had to think about my actual flesh and blood. I rubbed my hands together before I crawled into the RV which was a lot more difficult than it should have been. The dings in the side and on top of the vehicle made it much more compact, and I will not lie to you. I am a big man.

"_Tucker, I have a question,"_ I heard the female Danny say to Tucker.

"_Yeah?"_ was his response.

"_Why do you think that Alucard and Dark Phantom left without leveling Amity Park?"_

There was a pause before I heard Tucker mumble something to the girl version of my son. I frowned. Why did they get quiet all of a sudden? Had they seen someone and decided to whisper? Or maybe Tucker hadn't really said anything at all because he didn't know the answer to the question himself? Either way, I was curious as to why the two ghosts just left as well, so now I was thinking...

I pressed a few buttons on the dashboard which brought up the radar. On the bright side, that seemed to be working fine…at least it had been until I pressed the 'Locate Phantom' button that we had installed. Sparks began to fly around the button before the radar began to fizzle and smoke. At first, I sat there wide eyed. This was unbelievable.

The next minute I realized that the sparks were no longer just coming from the dash, but from outside of the vehicle too.

"_Mr. Fenton!" _yelled Tucker and the female Danny in unison.

I had already known that something was wrong and that I needed to get out of the RV. That was much easier said than done. I was, ahem, sort of stuck.

[==Character Transition==]

_****Dani****_

Mr. Fenton and Tucker walked ahead as I somewhat hovered behind them. It hadn't really taken us that long to get to what was left of the RV. The RV was still standing, though it was an amazing sight. The RV was currently defying gravity. By this, I mean that it was missing a wheel, but managed to not lean. It had multiple dents in it like Thor had banged on it a few times with his hammer. There was oil leaking, and one of the doors had been ripped clean off the hinges.

Mr. Fenton freaked while Tucker just stared at the vehicle in awe. I had to admit that even I was somewhat awestruck. It's not every day that I get to see the Assault Vehicle, but it's even rarer that I see it in such a state. In fact, this is the first time that I've seen the RV like this.

After Tucker's questioning of the RV's security, I decided to stay out of it. I could see that Mr. Fenton was not his usual goofy self which meant he was in a much more serious state of mind. He already didn't like me. With a casual glance, I looked towards Tucker who was watching Mr. Fenton squeeze his way into the RV.

"_Tucker, I have a question,"_ I asked timidly.

"_Yeah?"_

"_Why do you think that Alucard and Dark Phantom left without leveling Amity Park?"_

Tucker looked towards Mr. Fenton for a moment before his voice got low. Clearly he hadn't wanted Mr. Fenton to hear his response.

"_I think it's because he wants to draw Danny out. In other words, he's playing with him sort of like how Vlad did during the whole event with the Disasteroid."_

"_What did my…what did Vlad do to Danny?"_ I asked, still not exactly sure of all the details surrounding that particular incident.

All I knew about that day was that Danny had gone into the Ghost Zone in an attempt to capture ghosts. I had joked to one of my ghostly allies that there must have been a lack of ghosts terrorizing the town of Amity Park, so Danny must have gotten impatient and decided to capture them before they struck. We laughed at that for a while before trying to understand why.

Taking the ghosts against their wills wasn't exactly a smart idea, especially in their own territory. No-one actually gave me a definitive answer to why Danny was doing what he was, so of course I decided to see what was going on, and if need be, to help whoever needed it. I didn't exactly make it to Danny in time to question him directly, but I had finally come across someone (the Ghost Writer), who told me about a meteor threatening to destroy all things in existence.

"_Vlad played on Danny's pride. Basically, as the mayor of Amity Park, he was able to hire these three ghost busters called Master's Blasters. They were awesome. They were even better than Valerie. They managed to take down ghosts with little or no problem. This made Danny feel as though he was no longer needed, and well, after getting caught in his underwear, like, a good three times… he decided that enough was enough, and chose to get rid of his powers."_

I gasped. Danny was going to…no, Danny got rid of his powers?

"_How?"_ I asked, a little confused as to how he managed to rid himself of his ghost powers.

"_Actually, it was a lot simpler than I could have ever imagined, though it was totally stupid and dangerous. See, he got rid of them the same way he got them. He walked back into the Ghost Portal and activated it. His dad had stripped it down to its basic workings. Danny thought that if he got his powers that same way, then maybe if he reversed the process then it would take away his ghost powers. Well, it…it worked; surprisingly."_

I slowly shook my head. I was clearly shocked. I mean, Danny would never…but he did.

"_The portal was totally wrecked after that,"_ continued Tucker, though his eyes had turned back to Mr. Fenton. He wasn't really moving. It was like he was trying to figure out how to get further into the RV.

"_His dad was devastated because there was no way to fix the portal. He would have to totally start from scratch."_

"_But when I saw Danny he had his powers back. How'd that happen?"_

Tucker grimaced slightly at having to recall the memory.

"_According to Danny, most of the ghosts attacked him. From what I surmised, Danny's body was able to absorb the ectoplasm thanks to some of it still lingering, dormant, in his DNA. The absorbed ectoplasm must have then melded completely with his molecular code thus causing the dormant ectoplasm in him to reawaken which simultaneously reawakened all of his ghostly abilities."_

"_Right, so that's how he lost and regained his ghost powers, but how did he know that he would survive?"_

"_I don't think he thought of that considering he's already half dead…and he can be pretty clueless."_

I rubbed my head before looking over towards the RV. Tucker had been so busy talking, and I had been so busy listening that we wouldn't have even noticed if Mr. Fenton was standing there listening.

Tucker caught on and turned towards the RV as well. We both stood there silently before Tucker started to sniff the air.

"_Do you smell smoke?"_ he asked as he turned to look at me with a worried frown.

I closed my eyes and breathed in the air as well. My eyes flashed a brighter green for a moment before I turned to the RV. I looked at it carefully before noticing smoke wafting into the air. My eyes widened in horror as the realization struck.

"_MR. FENTON!" _Tucker and I both yelled.

"_TUCKER, GET BACK!"_ I yelled before I flew towards the RV.

I quickly turned intangible and grabbed a squirming Mr. Fenton. Once he was firmly in my grasp, I turned him intangible with me then pulled him through the RV. I then hoisted him up and flew him a safe distance away, and not a moment too soon. The RV had exploded sending shards of everything comprised to make the RV everywhere. Small flames even began to dance around the rubble.

I sat Mr. Fenton down and then let him go which returned him to a tangible state. I then began to look around frantically for Tucker while dropping my intangibility.

"_Tucker?!"_ I yelled, clearly worried about him.

"_Y-yo,"_ responded Tucker, closer than I actually expected him to be.

Mr. Fenton and I turned around to face the dark skinned boy. He had hidden himself behind a mailbox which, obviously, wasn't a really safe spot, but it sufficed. He was staring at the rising flames like he was mesmerized. Mr. Fenton turned back to the now charcoal remnants of the RV. It was really disheartening to see such a look on the man's face. He and his wife had put so much work into the RV no doubt, and the fact that it was gone just like that…

"_Mr. Fenton?"_ I asked timidly.

He didn't respond to me. I turned to look at Tucker who gave me a slightly reassuring smile then I turned back to Mr. Fenton. Before I could try again, Tucker's PDA went off. It startled me at first because I had no idea what it was, and judging by the way Tucker jumped, neither did he. Tucker chuckled awkwardly once he realized that it was his PDA then reached in his pocket and pulled out his personal computer.

"_It's a text message from Sam,"_ he stated with a sigh of relief.

"_What's it say?"_ I questioned while Mr. Fenton just watched us.

"_It says to meet at the Nasty Burger."_

Tucker and I froze before we began to look around at the street we were on.

"_Tucker…"_ I began only to be cut off by Tucker himself.

"_It's gonna take us a while on foot considering how far we are. Dani maybe you should fly on ahead."_

I shook my head. I couldn't just leave the two of them out here practically defenseless, especially with such powerful ghosts lurking about…or at least on the loose.

"_No way, I'm sticking to the two of you like glue."_

"_Hopefully you'll stick to us a good distance down wind. I mean, you still wreak, girl."_

I punched Tucker in his arm which elicited an 'ouch' from him. I smiled, satisfied at that before I turned to a distraught looking Mr. Fenton. I could only wonder what was going through his mind right now.

[==Character Transition==]

_****TF****_

Danni punches real hard for a girl, then again she was in her ghost form. I mumbled something under my breath before I began to type in a message to Sam which stated how far away from the Nasty Burger we were, the fact that I had Danni with me, and the fact that we also had Mr. Fenton with us. When I sent her the message, I turned to face Mr. Fenton. The guy looked really beat. I couldn't help but try to analyze what could have possibly been racing through his head.

From the beginning, it would be Vlad's clone, Danny's jerky evil self, Amity Park's being in danger from both those ghost, the fact that Danny was probably really hurt, and the fact that the RV was completely trashed and burned.

Danni continued to try to talk to Mr. Fenton, but he seemed to be trapped in his own world. The poor guy was just having a bad afternoon.

I looked back down at my PDA just in time to receive another message from Sam. She had asked why Mr. Fenton was there since he was supposed to be helping Mrs. Fenton with their ghost invention. She had also asked if he had at least brought the RV or the Speeder with him. Ha, if only she knew, right?

I sent her a message back about how the RV was currently adding on global warming, before telling her we'd get to the Nasty Burger as soon as we could. Once that was sent, I nudged Danni and then pointed in the direction of the Nasty Burger.

"_Mr. Fenton, Danny and Sam are at the Nasty Burger. We should get going."_

That seemed to somewhat snap Mr. Fenton out of his stupor, but not by a lot.

"_We would get there a lot faster if the RV wasn't acting as fire wood,"_ he mumbled with defeat evident in his voice.

Danni and I looked at each other before she took to the air and flew ahead of us a little bit. She looked around occasionally, most likely to make sure there were no bothersome ghosts around. She then beckoned for us to follow. Mr. Fenton walked after her while I took it upon myself to take up the rear. The three of us were silent for about five blocks until Mr. Fenton finally said something.

"_I'm a failure."_

Danni and I both stopped simultaneously to look at Danny's dad.

"_No you're not, Mr. Fenton. Why would you even say that?"_ asked Danni.

She was clearly concerned, and I could tell that it wasn't just because she was trying to get into his good books. Danni was just like Danny. She was caring and she would save anyone who was in need, whether they deserved it or not.

"_Because it's true!"_ stated Mr. Fenton while hoisting his hands angrily in the air.

"_I couldn't even tell that my best friend loved my wife. I couldn't tell that Danny Phantom was really my own son. I can't even correctly solve the calculations to perfect my inventions! That's all Maddie's doing. I don't even understand what it is that she's sees in me. I constantly forget our anniversary, I can be completely oblivious to her feelings, and and…"_

"_Stop it,"_ snapped Danni, which surprised both me and Mr. Fenton.

Danni seemed somewhat stunned at her outburst as well, but that didn't seem to stop her from pressing on.

"_Vlad covers his tracks really well. If he didn't want you to know something, you wouldn't know it. It's that simple. As for your calculations, you're better than most. I mean, I can barely understand fractions, and you're doing trigo-trigger…whatever it is. Not everyone is good at all that math stuff, but you can at least get the basics. Sure Mrs. Fenton has to correct you, but just think of her as sort of a proof reader to your story. Your inventions are much more special because it took the two of you to create. As for not knowing that Danny was actually Danny Phantom…well…"_

Danni looked at me for back up, and I grinned as I remembered Sam, Danny and I bringing up this topic before the big reveal. Danny had been so sure that someone would eventually put two and two together, especially if Sam and I were spotted with him while he was in his ghost form.

"_Who would ever suspect clumsy ol' Daniel Fenton to be Amity Park's top notch super butt kicking hero? I mean, seriously, Danny practically got shoved into lockers every day. Chances are what little bumps and bruises he got while battling ghosts could have easily been passed off as bullying."_

Danni gave me a thumbs up before she turned back to Mr. Fenton to continue where I had left off.

"_Besides, Danny's whole thing was to be as discreet as possible. You wouldn't have known he was Danny Phantom unless he wanted you to know or unless you really tried to put the two side by side. Why would you have any reason to believe that your son was a ghost? There was no point in comparing the two."_

Mr. Fenton seemed to cheer up a little, but it was still evident that he was feeling pretty low. Danni and I looked at each other.

"_There's this candy shop close to here. We have to pass it to get to the street that intercepts with the one the Nasty Burger is on. I hear they sell fudge,"_ I tried, hoping that the man's love of fudge would help lift his spirits a little.

Mr. Fenton perked up at the thought before muttering about how he liked fudge. I chuckled a bit before I sped up so that I was walking side by side with Mr. Fenton.

"_How much further until we're at that candy shop, Tucker? I could use the fudge," _spoke Mr. Fenton about ten minutes later.

"_Actually it's not that far from where we are,"_ I said happily, glad that Mr. Fenton was focused on that instead of his so called 'failures'.

"_Hey guys, I know I shouldn't jinx this by asking but…the streets are a lot clearer than usual, and considering that the ghost shields are down…wouldn't you think there'd be a lot of people coming out to investigate?"_

I smiled at Danni. She hadn't been in Amity Park when I enforced a few rules a while back.

"_No-one is to come out unless Mrs. Fenton, Danny Phantom, or I give the okay even if the Ghost Shields are down. That's why there isn't anyone out, and hopefully it'll stay that way."_

"_But what if the people see you out and about? Wouldn't that make them come out as well?"_

"_I'd hope not. The people know that I'm cool with DP and that I've had field experience. They'll probably just think I'm surveying the area to make sure that it's really safe. Heh, that'll put me in a great spot come election day just in case someone else decides to run against me."_

Danni shook her head while Mr. Fenton just stayed quiet. This worried me for obvious reasons, but I tried my best not to pry. Being Danny's best friend, I know his parents pretty well and I was considered part of the family. Sam was considered part of the family too, so this meant that we knew when to pry and when not to pry. This current situation with Mr. Fenton was one where I knew some of what was troubling the big guy, but not all. I could tell that a lot of it was personal just by his outburst, so I knew for my sanity that I shouldn't delve into it. I'd just have to mention it to Danny and hope that he could do something to assure his dad that he wasn't a failure.

Almost forty-five minutes later we found ourselves a few blocks from the Nasty Burger. Mr. Fenton had a brown paper bag filled with different types of fudge, while Danni and I spoke about how things had settled down after the whole Disasteroid ordeal.

"_So while all the other ghosts left, you stayed in Amity Park a little while longer?"_ I asked, surprised to hear that.

I hadn't really known that Danni had stuck around. Usually she helped out then ducked out of town.

"_Yeah. I wanted to make sure that Danny was alright. I had heard that he did have some trouble, but I hadn't known to what extent until you told me. I never would have thought that Vlad could make Danny feel so low that he would get rid of his powers."_

I nodded. The things Vlad was capable of…Seriously.

"_Danny was able to sense me nearby, and he called out to me. He wanted to introduce me to his parents. This was a little bit before he formally introduced me to you and Sam."_

For a while, Danny had been calling Danni his cousin since that was how she had introduced herself. Danny actually believed, at the time Danni first appeared on the scene, that he had a cousin named Danni and since they were pretty much into the same thing he didn't question it much. Danni had told Danny that she had run away from home, and had come to stay with him.

In the end though, it had all been a clever ruse by Vlad. Danni was one of many failed clones of Danny who had been sent out to collect some sort of mid morph DNA that would help Vlad complete his perfect clone of Danny. When Vlad came to Amity Park to confront Danny, Danni had shown her true colors and aided Vlad, but only because he had earlier told her that the reason he needed Danny's mid morph sample was so that he could stabilize her and the other clones. That had been a lie, and so she later turned on Vlad and helped Danny. She then kind flew off dramatically.

Danny later returned the favor when Danni came back to Amity Park. She had been unstable when she left which meant that upon her return she was much worse. Valerie, who had taken up ghost hunting after Danny and a ghost dog pretty much ruined her life on accident, had captured Danni because Vlad had hired her to do so saying that Danni was out to hurt him or something. She also managed to use Danni as bait to get to Danny.

Danny managed to convince Valerie that Danni couldn't hurt anyone in her current state and that Danni was also half human. Sure Valerie had no trouble destroying ghosts, but humans were a different matter entirely.

Anyway, Danni was, to us, Danny's cousin, although we probably should have realized that something wasn't right from the start. I mean, how could Danny have a cousin named Danni who was also half ghost? It was way too much of a coincidence.

"_What did they say, ya know, at first?"_ I asked Danni.

She looked as though she didn't want to answer the question, but she did so anyway.

"_They didn't say anything. They just gave me this…hurt and disgusted look…like I was some sort of abomination. I couldn't stand that, and so I flew off."_

I looked down. I knew the Fenton's would react harshly, but I guess I just couldn't really truly imagine it. Danni stayed quiet for a moment before she decided that it was time to change the subject.

"_What about you, Mister Mayor?"_ She asked before giving me a teasing smile.

"_Dude, you come up with a plan to save the world, display just how techno-savvy you are, and have a friend who's the town's half ghost hero, and you get a free pass to the Mayor's office."_

Danni giggled before I continued.

"_At first, I didn't think they were serious. I mean, come on, how many fifteen year-old mayors are there out there? They started telling me and my parents everything we needed to know, and they wouldn't take me saying no for an answer. They wanted me to be mayor."_

"_Wow, Tucker, that's amazing."_

"_Not really. I don't get as much free time as I like, I have to endure people's fan mail to Danny as well as their complaints on top of juggling my education. It's not as easy as one would think even with my PDA's Schedule planner App."_

Danni rolled her eyes at me before we stopped outside of the Nasty Burger.

_****_  
[==Character Transition==]

****SM****

After I got off of the phone with Danny, I immediately sent a text to Tucker's PDA. My text was short and simple. All it read was 'meet us at the Nasty Burger'. I hadn't even asked about Danielle, but I figured that she must have been with Tucker. Then again, I wasn't with Danny, but that was beside the point. I knew where he was.

It took only a few moments for Tucker to send a response. Luckily I was right and he was with Danielle, but I hadn't expected for Mr. Fenton to also be with them. I questioned him, clearly expressing that Mr. Fenton was supposed to be helping Mrs. Fenton with their new experiment so that we could have something to use against the two ghosts who were so obviously planning something. I then asked if the RV or Speeder was there. It took a few minutes for Tucker's next text to appear. Well, so much for them getting to the Nasty Burger quickly. The RV was totaled, and who knew how far away they were.

I didn't bother to send them another message. I had to make my way to the Nasty Burger myself. I had told Danny that it would take me fifteen minutes by walking and ten minutes if I ran. I wasn't exactly lying. You see, when Danny got sent flying, I had been trying to shove the Time Scepter in my backpack. Of course it didn't fit considering how long it was, and how small my backpack was. I had been at least hoping that it would fit just enough for me to zip my bag up and prop it up against my back, but it wouldn't have worked the way I wanted it too.

Against my better judgment I put the scepter down the back of my shirt, making sure that it was securely under my bra, then I tightened the straps on my backpack to help keep the staff secure. Sure, I knew that it would be uncomfortable, but I knew the item was important and I couldn't just leave it behind and I needed my hands free.

When I looked back up towards Danny, Danielle, and Dan, I saw that Danny had been sent flying, I watched as he zoomed past where I had been standing, blinked in shock and slight confusion then chased after him. Of course, he had taken a pretty straight forward path. It happens when one can go intangible. That was bad for me considering that I had to run around buildings and cut through alleyways which were empty of him. For all I knew he could have ended up in the sewers.

I had kept looking around for him, taking my time to be very thorough in my search, but the more I looked the further I had gotten away from where the battle had taken place. It had taken awhile of searching, but I hadn't given up. I took off running again, calling out for Danny to answer me if he could. I was afraid that the worse had happened. Tears had begun to blur my vision, but I didn't stop running. It had been about twenty minutes later when my phone rang. I wiped away my tears and looked down at the number on my phone's screen. That was the call I got from Danny telling me that he was fine and that he was all the way at the Nasty Burger AND that Dash had brought him there. It was a lot to take in, but I was so relieved that I couldn't help but to laugh despite the fear that was still clenching at my chest. I was seriously going to reprimand both Danny and Danielle when I saw them.

Now, as I continued onward since I wasn't too far from the fast food joint, I realized just how much I had ran. My legs were sore from running so much, and whatever adrenaline had been pumping through me was leaving me now, but I knew I couldn't stop. I told Danny that I was fine and that I would meet him there. I wasn't some damsel who needed rescuing. That was Tucker's thing, not mine. No, I wasn't one of those prissy little things that waited for their knight to come rescue them. I made my own escape routes, I fought my own battles, and I made my own way. It was just how I was. With that being said, I have to admit that sometimes it is good to have help once in a while. To me, this was not one of those times. It was just a ten to fifteen minute walk to the Nasty Burger for me, no big.

Eighteen minutes later I reached the Nasty Burger. The doors were closed and locked some reason. I mean, ghost can turn intangible and come through the walls unless of course there is a ghost shield up. What if there were people on the outside who were being chased by ghosts and needed a safe haven? You'd waste time by having to unlock the doors regardless of a shield or not. Some people just really confuse me.

I knocked on the doors that led into the Nasty Burger. At first, I wasn't sure anyone heard me, but I saw Paulina look directly at me. She frowned at me before brushing her hair over her shoulder. She then completely ignored me and went back to her conversation, and quite animatedly might I add. I glared at her and clenched my fists tightly. Who did that stuck up little snob think she was? That's when messy black hair caught my attention. I would recognize that hair anywhere. Paulina was talking to Danny.

Without Tucker or Danny to calm me down, I would have most likely beat excess sun tan lotion off her many times over, but right now Tucker wasn't there and Danny was inside. Without realizing it my hand smashed through the glass which seemed to catch everyone's undivided attention. I just stood there, captivated by the blood that had slowly begun to cover my hand.

"_Sam?"_ I heard Danny ask as he rushed over to me. He grabbed my hand in his, but I yanked it away from him.

My full on attention was still locked on with Paulina. She seemed a little freaked out, but then she just shook her head and turned her attention back to Danny.

"_She's so unstable and so unfashionable, Danny. Why not dump her and go with me? I'm much prettier and tons more popular."_

I didn't even give Danny a chance to reply to that little succubus.

"_When Danny wants to become a shallow nobody, I'm sure you'd be the first person he'd call."_

"_If I remember correctly, Danny had been trying to date me way before you. Clearly you're just the rebound girl."_

There was a bit of whispering and chanting among the group of kids. I took one step forward, but Danny blocked my way.

"_Sam, don't,"_ started Danny, but I just moved aside him with my bloody hand clenched tightly in a fist.

I could tell that there was glass stuck in there, but I didn't care. The only thing that was on my mind was the fact that Paulina would probably have let me die out there if there had been a ghost attack, then she would have proceeded to get closer to Danny.

"_Oh don't worry, Danny. I won't. Trust me. I won't."_

Danny said nothing, but I could feel him watching me. He was going to step in if either I or Paulina raised a finger.

"_Just because you're miss popularity means nothing to me, Paulina. I'm not afraid of you or your little groupies. You think that you can pick on whoever you want just because you're so pretty or so perfect when you're clearly not. To put it plainly, Paulina, you're nothing more than a poser. You're a wannabe. You wannabe cute, you wanna have real friends, but you can't have that because you're not true to yourself. You think Dash and Star are your friends? Please, if you lose it all they're going to treat you the same way that you all treated Valerie."_

Paulina looked at me, clearly stunned at my words, but I was far from done.

"_You're just a hopeless little bimbo who's only taste is fashion, and even then that taste isn't truly your own. Your style is borrowed, you're anything but unique and you blend in so well that after high school the only thing you're going to have going for you may just be your looks because you certainly have no personality."_

Paulina stiffened up, and actually looked as though she was going to cry. That look soon was replaced with one of pure rage.

"_Oh no. No you did not just go there! I am not a poser and I am not a wannabe. I AM popular, and I DO have real friends, and I am most definitely true to myself! I am not gonna sit here and be insulted by some goth loser who has one good thing going for her which is the fact that she got lucky enough to date the town's hero!"_

"_I'd rather have one good thing going for me instead of having unstable friendships with people who are like drones. They hang out in cliques that are just as shallow as they are and make fun or belittle others because of the fact they don't act, dress, or talk a certain way. You're a bully Paulina, and a jealous, big headed oaf. The only reason you're truly trying so hard with Danny is because of his hero status. Before you knew who he was, you used him to try to make me angry, and you belittled him among many other things! Now you're basically groveling at his feet. Get it through your head, Paulina, Danny doesn't want you, he wants me."_

There was a stifling silence in the Nasty Burger, then murmuring could be heard. Paulina stuck her nose in the air before her fists clenched and then unclenched. I smirked triumphantly before I turned around. Danny was looking at me with this disapproving look on his face, but I just shrugged him off. Seconds later Danny took my uninjured hand and turned us both intangible. At first I thought it was just so he could get the glass from out of my hand, which fell to the ground with a slight tinkling sound. Then I thought it was because of all the red and green blood that seemed to have come from Danny. That was when I realized just how messed up he appeared to be, but my attention was soon averted when the real reason why Danny turned us both intangible made itself known.

I had been wrong. The reason Danny had turned us intangible was because Paulina had tried to throw a punch at me when I had my back turned. She stumbled forward due to Danny's quick thinking and slid through Danny, but that only seemed to make her eyes glow with hatred.

"_COWARD!"_ I yelled when I realized what she had done.

"_SAM!" _yelled Danny when I yanked my arm from his grasp which caused me to become solid.

The moment I realized I was solid, I didn't hesitate to swing back, and when I did, let's just say I got me a bull's eye. Paulina stumbled back while I shook off my bleeding hand. It was the hand that I had hit her with.

"_I've been wanting to do that for a very. Long. Time,"_ I stated while standing up straight.

Paulina moved away from me, while Danny placed both hands on my shoulders in an attempt to hold me back.

"_Sam, that was totally unnecessary!"_

"_Says, you,"_ I mumbled before I tried to hunch forward only to be stopped by the Time Scepter which somehow managed to stay in its locatop.

Danny kept a firm grip on me while I let my eyes close. Man I was tired, and that release of energy only made me realize just how tired I had been. That was when I heard the footsteps of three other people entering the Nasty Burger.

"_Is Sam alight?"_ I heard Tucker ask before I slowly opened my eyes.

[==Character Transition==]

_****DF****_

"_I think she's just exhausted,"_ I answered as I held Sam closer to me.

She had been so angry when she came in. I mean, yeah, she and Paulina were like rivals or something, but I never expected them to fight. No-one had exactly tried to stop the fight except for me, and now Paulina was hurt. I wondered if that only proved Sam's point to Paulina. Real friends would have at least tried to stop a fight from happening instead of watching it for entertainment purposes.

"_Are you alright, Paulina?"_ I asked as I watched her grab someone's cup of ice and hold it against her eye.

Sam scoffed at my question, but I ignored her for the time being. Paulina, on the other hand, glared at me before she turned her head away.

"_You need to keep that geek on a leash."_

I frowned.

"_You're the one who threw the first punch,"_ I stated in Sam's defense.

"_Yeah, and if you hadn't turned her un-solid I would have hit her. You didn't even bother to turn me intangible when she swung at me."_

Paulina pouted while Tucker gawked at us. He hadn't come in on that part, thank goodness.

"_Wait, Sam decked Paulina? Dude, what the heck happened?"_

"_No idea,"_ I said as I gave Tucker an 'I'll tell you later look'.

Tucker took the hint while Dani just looked around at all the people. I looked from her to Tucker then to...my…dad? In an instant, my dad rushed towards me. It was like a bright orange blur just had sped towards me. I let go of Sam while Tucker moved towards her to keep her balanced. Before I could stop my dad or make some kind of protest, I suddenly felt myself be wrapped into one of my father's ferocious bear hugs.

I winched in pain. I may have been up and about, but my body was still sore. A normal hug would have been painful, but tolerable. My dad's bear hug…?

"_Dad, what are you doing here? I thought you were helping mom?" _I asked as I turned intangible so that I could escape my dad's grasp.

My dad looked at me as his happy expression seemed to go sour after I had removed myself from his killer grip.

"_I was, but…well, I wanted to help you, son."_

"_Dad I…"_

"_But I'm no good at ghost hunting."_

I shut my mouth before looking at Tucker. Tucker gave me that same 'I'll tell you later look' that I gave him, and all I could do was nod. Sam looked somewhat dazed at my father's words, and I could feel her about to make some sort of quip, but she held her tongue…or perhaps she was just tired. It was hard to tell.

"_Um…so yeah, anyway,"_ I started before I looked over my girlfriend and then my best friend.

"_Where is Al and Phantom?"_

"_They flew off towards the outskirts of town,"_ replied Dani with a worried look on her face.

"_But why didn't they attack the town!?"_ asked a voice I hadn't been expecting.

"_Dash, are you complaining?"_ added Tucker with amusement.

Dash had long since sat down beside Kwan and the other footballs players. I had looked in his direction a few times while Paulina and Sam were arguing just to see what he would do. He made no attempt to help, although he did frown at some of the things that Sam had to say. Though he wouldn't admit it, I could tell that he had taken some of Sam's words to heart.

Dash glared at Tucker's question before I piped up in hopes of keeping what little peace was left from escaping out the glass door that Sam had smashed  
through.

"_I agree with Dash. Why go through all the trouble to cut the power and leave the town defenseless just to retreat? It doesn't make any sense."_

My dad seemed to be thinking, or at least he was trying to think while he ate some fudge. Sam was shaking her hand like it would help with the pain, while at the same time watching me with a neutral expression. Dani and Tucker looked at each other, but said nothing. Of course I caught the brief exchange and asked, _"Mind sharing your telepathic thoughts with the rest of the class?"_

Dani and Tucker both avoided my gaze before I looked to Tucker, then to Dani. Dani hesitated before she caved.

"_Maybe they're, or rather, Alucard is taunting you. It's not unlike something Vlad would do, right?"_

Tucker looked at Dani before he then decided to put in his two cents.

"_He's showing off his power. He's controlling Phantom, he cut the town's power which has caused the Ghost Shields to go down and he's leaving us alone for the time being. He's playing with us."_

"_Who's Phantom and this Alucard guy you dweebs keep talking about?"_ asked Dash.

I looked at the football star with a frown on my face. Like I said before, Dash was being way too calm. I think Tucker and Sam sorta saw it as well.

"_Phantom and Alucard are two evil ghosts who are possibly a lot more powerful than Danny," Sam_ answered exasperatedly.

Dash looked at me worriedly which was a tad bit awkward. I immediately looked down over at Sam and realized that she was tried to hide her fatigue with annoyance. That was when I noticed that she had the Time Scepter somehow attached to her back. Wanting to change the subject, I asked her,

"_Do you want me to get that?"_

"_Get what?"_

"_The Time Scepter."_

The look on Sam's face implied that she had forgotten about it. She reached back, squirmed a little bit and pulled the scepter from her back. I wanted to question how she had managed to keep it wherever it was, but she gave me this look that said not to ask.

Sam gave me the scepter and I passed it over to Dani so that she could hold on to it. She walked over and took it in her hand. She began to examine it while absently walking over to a table where she sat herself down. It seemed that she was thinking, along with everyone else in the Nasty Burger. I don't know when, but a silence had developed around us, and it was very unnerving.

"_Danny?"_ asked Dani which thankfully broke the silence.

I give her a quizzical look and let a 'Hm?'escape my throat.

"_My ghost sense went off before we came inside," _she said almost nervously.

I looked at her before remembering that my ghost sense had gone off earlier as well.

"_When I woke up, my ghost sense went off, but I haven't seen a ghost in here."_

Tucker pointed at Dash.

"_Well, Dash is way too calm. I say he's possessed."_

Dash growled at Tucker, who scooted back.

"_Or not."_

"_No, it's not Dash, trust me. I have my suspicions as to who the culprit is though."_

I looked back towards the kids at the technology based table. Tucker followed my gaze and I saw his eyes brighten out the corner of my eye.

"_TERRA!"_ he exclaimed happily before he walked over to her.

Terra looked over to him and smiled, although her smile wavered a bit.

"_Are you alright, Tuck, you seem tired."_

"_Let's just say a lot of running and walking and more running was involved."_

"_A necessary evil, I guess,"_ she said before she adjusted her glasses over the bridge of her nose.

I rolled my eyes before turning back to Dani and my dad.

"_We seriously need to figure something out. The town's defenseless, Sam needs rest, and we have no idea what's truly in store for us. On top of that…I have a lot of  
things to figure out."_

Dani looked at me and nodded while my dad looked around at all the people currently inside of the food joint. He felt bad. I watched him put back a half-eaten  
piece of fudge then head for the door.

"_Dad?_" I called out, unsure of where he was going.

He just turned back to me and gave me a smile so forced that I felt insulted.

"_I'm fine, Danny-boy."_

My eyes widened with my dad's words. He was certainly not fine.

"_Are not,"_ I mumbled rather childishly.

Sam stood beside me and watched as my dad walked out of the Naster Burger. I wanted to stop him and protest that he was not alright, and then ask him what was going on, but it looked as though he just needed some time. Without looking towards Sam, I asked,

"_So is this how you guys feel when I tell you I'm fine?"_

"_Yep, though I want to punch you in the face half the time you say it."_

I looked at Dani who had shot up from where she had been sitting.

"_I'll go back with him."_

"_I'm going too,"_ said Tucker.

"_We might as well all head back. I need to see how mom's doing,"_ I muttered while I continued to watch the door.

"_What about the rest of us?"_ asked Dash which resulted in a chorus of 'yeah' and 'right'.

"_You're safer indoors than outdoors, but I don't expect you all to stay here. If you live close by, then I suggest you get home. The rest of you, I suggest staying inside  
here for now," _stated Tucker, putting on his Mayoral front.

There were people talking amongst themselves. Everyone wanted to leave, but a lot of people were afraid.

"_Dani, take Sam back to my place. Tucker, you go with them. I'll stay here and get a bird's eye view of things while I see to it that everyone who wants to leave gets home safely."_

Sam gawked at me, but it was no secret that she was currently forcing herself to stay upright. She didn't retaliate though which only seemed to prove my point more. She needed to rest.

Realizing that I had volunteered to watch as everyone returned to their homes, I rubbed my head knowing that what I had said was truly easier said than done. Still, it was the only way to get everyone to calm down plus I knew that if I didn't, they were going to leave either way which was very dangerous. I mean, my evil self and a clone of Vlad was out there somewhere, both of which are, annoyingly, stronger than I am. If they decided to attack while everyone made their escape, I'd at least want to try to protect them by being a distraction.

"_On it,"_ said Dani as she handed Tucker the Time Scepter in order to make room for Sam.

She then hovered over to me, looked towards Sam, and picked her up. Thanks to her ghost powers, it seemed very simple. Sam tensed, not wanting to be  
picked up before sending a glare my way. I knew we were going to be arguing about this later.

I looked towards Tucker who placed his hand on my shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.

"_Be careful, dude."_

"_Aren't I always?"_ I joked nervously.

The look Tucker gave me was a clear 'no', but he didn't say it. Instead he raced after my Dani who was already at the door, while I turned around to face the crowd.

"_Alright, if you want to go home let's get to it. Those who feel safer staying here, head towards the back."_

No-one moved towards the back, so I was guessing that they all wanted to get home to their families or just get home to their nice warm beds. It was getting pretty late. It was close to at least 9 o'clock.

Dash stood to my left while Kwan stood to my right. Usually that meant it was time to get stuffed my locker so my nervousness slightly increased despite the fact that I knew they weren't going to do that, at least not Kwan.

The other football players let the cheerleaders stand in front of them. Paulina stood beside Star who was very quiet despite the low speaking of Paulina. It seemed that Paulina was still going on about the shiner that Sam had given her. Star, on the other hand, looked like she was in deep thought for a change, but she quickly snapped out of it and placed her hand on Paulina's shoulder before she started whispering as well. The techno geeks, band geeks, and others stood behind the cheerleaders, and then the remaining football players completed the circle.

I headed out of the Nasty Burger first and forced myself to transform. The transformation was a bit painful, probably because I was far too drained. Despite the rainbow colored dots that lined my somewhat darkening vision, I floated into the air and began to look around. I rose higher and higher until I could see a good portion of the town. I then looked down and watched as everyone seemed to scurry to their respective houses. Some walked, some ran. Others like Paulina seemed to have an automobile and a few even offered rides to their fellow students. Other individuals had their bikes and rode them home.

"_It's funny that everyone comes together when there's a world threatening crisis on our hands,"_ I said to myself as I watched Paulina let a few band members in her car.

She looked up in my direction, and I realized that she may or may not have done that to prove some sort of point to me. I ignored her though and began to circle around and around making sure that everyone got to where they were going safely. It had taken pretty much an hour for everyone to get home, or so I had thought.

I landed back in front of the Nasty Burger on my hands and knees only to see Dash and Terra standing in front of me.

"_What?"_ I asked, clearly confused as to why they hadn't left yet.

"_I decided I felt safer here,"_ replied Dash with a simple shrug.

"_It doesn't exactly matter where we go considering the town's ghost shield is down for the count," _replied Terra with a similar reaction to Dash's.

"_What about your parents?"_ I asked, the question opened to both.

Terra frowned, shrugged and responded with a simple, _"They'd understand."_

Dash, on the other hand, just didn't answer. Ignoring him, I continued to focus on Terra. I wanted to question her more, but I decided that I would leave it for  
another time. It was pretty much after nine now. I had to get home make sure that everything was fine.

"_I'll come back and check on the both of you. Be careful. I'll bring some weapons and show you how they work."_

"_Like I need you checkin' up on me,"_ replied Dash coldly. He folded his arms, stuck his nose in the air and went back inside.

Terra looked at him and then shook her head.

"_Thanks Danny. Be careful on your way home."_

With that, Terra waved at me, walked inside and locked the door. Any other time, I would have stated that I'd definitely be careful. This time I couldn't help but feel like I was being warned. I narrowed my eyes in suspicion before I flew haphazardly back to Fenton Works.

TBC


	7. Unexpected

Chapter Seven: Unexpected

****Dani****

Tucker, Sam and I quickly caught up with Mr. Fenton, who was abnormally quiet. The silence prompted the three of us to remain that way, at least until we got overwhelmed with the sheer awkwardness of the quiet. Sam decided that she wasn't going to be pleasant, exactly. She made it her business to complain about how Danny just decided everything for her like she was some clueless dolt. I wanted to tell her that Danny was just trying to protect everyone and that he just spoke out without considering anyone else's feelings, but her earlier comment about me smelling awful had me fuming silently. I knew I stank. I didn't need to hear it from everyone!

So Sam continued to complain, though her words had become a bit slurred. She was finally dozing off. Tucker, who had been walking quickly to keep up with me wasn't paying us that much attention, though I did notice him occasionally looking from Mr. Fenton to the Time Scepter. His main focus, however, seemed to have been examining the Time Scepter. This resulted in him nearly bumping into a bunch of parked cars and lampposts.

"_The tech that went into this is incredible! You can't really tell at first glance, but this is a highly advance piece of technology. You think Danny would get mad if I tried to take it apart?"_

I snort at Tucker and his question before responding with a simple, _"Duh."_

Tucker pouted before he looked back over the Time Scepter. I stopped and hovered a little bit so that I could look around and make sure that the coast was clear. I turned to look in Tucker's direction and frowned a little bit.

"_Hey Tuck?"_ I asked as I looked at the Time Scepter.

"_Yeah?"_

"_Did that thing shrink?"_

At first, it was clear that Tucker had no idea what I was referring to. I nodded my head at the scepter, and watched as Tucker looked it over, and then think about it.

"_You're right. It's been changing its sizes. When that Clockwork dude had it, it was an actual 'staff', not a scepter. When Danny held it, he was able to balance it on his hand since it was the size of a baton."_

"_Mhm, but when I saw Sam with it, it was almost the same size as when Clockwork had it."_

"_Yeah, and when you held it, it was a little longer than when Danny was holding it back at the house!"_

"_Why do you think it's doing that, Tucker?"_

Tucker looked at the Time Scepter with a frown on his face. He turned it over and over in his hand, looking for anything that could possibly explain why it would extend and retract, but he couldn't see anything.

"_Maybe there's a hidden button on here somewhere,"_ he stated more so to himself than to me.

I nodded my head then decided that we shouldn't remain in one spot for too long. Mr. Fenton had the right idea, considering how far ahead of us he had gotten. It was clear that he wasn't concerned with anything but his failures at the moment, and seeing him act like that was really depressing. With a sigh, I look at Tucker who was standing still underneath a lamppost, taking a much more…less than subtle approach to figuring out the scepter.

"_Let's get a move on Tuck, it's late."_

"_Yeah, right,"_ stated Tucker absently while he walked and looked over the scepter at the same time.

I just shook my head and continued to fly with my focus clearly on Mr. Fenton. I knew that everything he had gone through must have been rough. I mean, finding out that your best friend was the Wisconsin Ghost and that he had blamed you for everything, then learning that this same guy was trying to marry your wife and steal your son who you also found out was the world famous and infamous Danny Phantom? Maybe the big kicker was when your best friend not only betrayed you but the ENTIRE WORLD? Either way, Mr. Fenton was no doubt confused and riddled with guilt, and there wasn't anything I could do about it because…well, he doesn't like me too much.

Sam shifted her weight a few times, clearly sleeping in my arms. I couldn't help but groan at the sudden movement because I nearly dropped her. It's not that she was heavy though, but because I wasn't paying her any attention. With a shake of my head, and an eye roll at Tucker who was chuckling at me, I continued on ahead like nothing had happened.

A little while later, the four of us had made it back to FentonWorks where Mrs. Fenton and Jasmine had been waiting. Mr. Fenton had gone inside first while Tucker let me go in next since I was carrying Sam. I laid Danny's girlfriend on the couch before I reverted back to my human form, took a breath and flopped down on the floor. Tucker came inside last and sat himself down on the recliner chair to finish examining the Time Staff.

Mr. Fenton had gone up the stairs while Mrs. Fenton and Jazz looked on. Eventually though, the two remaining Fentons began to sniff the air, both their noses turning up in disgust.

"_What is that smell?"_ they both asked aloud.

"_Danni,_" Tucker replied almost instantly.

At first, it seemed that Jazz and Mrs. Fenton were thinking that he meant Danny, ya know, the guy I'm cloned from, but then they both turned to look at me. Jazz had her arms over her chest while giving me this disapproving look.

"_What?!"_ I asked, moodily. _"I fell in a dumpster while fighting that future ghost version of Danny."_

"_You need a shower, little sister, and I mean immediately."_

When Jazz gets serious with me, she calls me her little sister. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Sure, I needed a bath badly, but I didn't bring any extra clothes, but I should have known that Jazz would have the solution to all my problems.

"_I have some old clothes that are just your size. You go get into the shower, and I'll bring you some."_

"_Amen,"_ muttered Tucker who still had yet to look up.

Unable to help myself, I sent small sparks of ecto-energy at Tucker, shocking his arm.

"_Ow! Okay, Okay!" _

I nodded my head once in triumph before Jazz shook her head disapprovingly.

"_But wait, I can't take a bath now! I mean, not with all the stuff that's going on."_

"_Sure you can, sweetie,"_ was Mrs. Fenton's reply.

"_Jazz, Tucker and I can monitor the situation while you shower, and when you're done we'll fill you in, and Danny when he gets home."_

"_What about Mr. Fenton?"_ I asked, showing my concern for the oldest male Fenton.

"_I'm going to talk to him in a moment, so don't you worry. An adorable young lady shouldn't smell like raw sewage and ectoplasmic backup, so go take a shower."_

With a sigh and a shake of my head, I head up the stares to the shower room. In the entire time Mrs. Fenton and I had been talking, Jazz had already laid out some clothes for me in the bathroom. I couldn't help but smile at her promptness or her overprotective-ness.

****Jazz****

I couldn't believe it at first when Danny had told me that that fruit loop Vlad had tried to clone him and that Danielle wasn't the only clone that had been created. The other clones didn't survive though, but either way…

When I look at Danielle, I can't help but feel this rage build up inside my chest, but it isn't directed at her. How can it be when none of this is her fault? Vlad is the one to blame for most of Danny's troubles, and now Danielle's. it's so hard to believe that Vlad had once been best friends with my dad considering how those two are the prime definition of contrast. Though Danielle was introduced to Sam, Tucker, Danny and I as a cousin, she's more like a sister to Danny and I. Despite her creation and upbringing, I couldn't be angry with her and I couldn't hate her, especially knowing the ordeals that she and Danny have both been through together.

Like Danny is my brother, Danielle is my sister, and being my sister…well…

The moment Danielle got out of the shower, I knew it by the sound of her yelling my name. I couldn't help but let a smile grace my lips as she came out of the bathroom wearing the clothes that I had laid out for her. It was clear by her expression that she wasn't too found of the hearts that littered the pink and red shirt or black shorts that had pink riddled in. She was so much like Danny that I just couldn't help myself, that and those were the only clothes that actually matched. Despite black going with everything, those black pants had red and a few splotches of pick in them.

"_Jazzzzzz, what is this?! I don't mean to be picky, but I know you have other clothes."_

"_Yeah, but I couldn't find them, and I didn't want to keep you waiting. You'll just have to wear those. It won't be so bad."_

"_UGGGGGH!"_

I couldn't help but chuckle as I watched Danielle retreat back into the living where I immediately heard Tucker make some sort of muffled comment. The painful 'ouch' that followed was a clear sign of Danielle's annoyance. I sighed before I decided that I should probably go and check the bathroom. If Danielle was anything like the boy she was cloned from then there would be clothes on the floor, accompanied by water.

Sure enough, Danielle's clothes were laying about on the floor. I couldn't help but shake my head in annoyance. I know that Danielle was cloned from Danny, raised more or less by Vlad, then self-taught, but having your clothes laying about for the world to see was just un-lady like. I knew than that I had to teach Danielle some form of etiquette.

As I cleaned up the bathroom I could hear my parents, or at least my dad from their bedroom down the hall and he was…yelling? For a moment I stopped to see if maybe it was my imagination, but sure enough I heard my dad yelling at my mom? That only happened once a year, and that was usually around their anniversary.

Taking Danielle's clothes and tossing them in the clothes hamper, I made my way silently to their room to see if I could hear the conversation better.

"_Jack, you really need to stop this. You know more than anyone that you're a competent ghost hunter. You've proven that on more than one occasion!"_

"_It doesn't matter, Maddie! I couldn't even see my best friend for what he really was! I was so blinded by our old college days that I neglected to see what was right there in front of me, and the ghost hunting? HA! Don't even get me started on that. The only thing I do is botch up the catches. I'm probably the laughingstock of the whole ghost hunting community. No wonder why the Guys in White, my HEROES, don't even acknowledge me!"_

"_Jack, you can't let things like this deter you from what's really important. You're a ghost hunter and an important member of our family. If Danny were here, he'd tell you the same thing."_

"_But only because he's out son, Mads. How many times has he lied to us to protect us both as Danny Phantom and Danny Fenton? How many things has he said to get out of being in one of our ghost hunting nets? How many times has he been lying about our inventions? How many times has he lied about our parenting? Maddie, I don't know what I can believe anymore."_

There was a pause from my parents' room, and I had to admit that I was scared. I had never heard my dad sound so genuinely concerned and even frightened. I knew that I had to talk to Danny and soon. Luckily for me, at the precise moment my little brother was heard downstairs.

****Danny****

I was still thinking about all that had happened to me today. The Clockwork appearance, the fight with my future self, the quick fight between Sam and Paulina, even when my dad scared me with his weird behavior. I don't really understand why things are happening the way it is, but I know one thing's for sure. My life is definitely becoming a lot more hectic.

As I continued to fly home, I began to wonder about the other ghosts who I hadn't seen in a while. Skulker, for example, wasn't the type to give up and yet I hadn't seen him for at least three months. I'm not one to complain, but both Tucker and I had agreed that it was definitely suspicious.

With a sigh, I fly higher into the sky, though I instantly feel a sudden sense of vertigo and have to land. I begin to walk down the street, continuing on my way home when the hair on the back of my neck stands up. My ghost sense doesn't alert me to any ghostly threat, but I know better than to let my guard down, especially with a Dark Future Phantom lurking about and a clone of a fruit loop calling the shots.

A few times I stop walking to take a look around, something in my gut telling me that I'm being followed. Despite this, I keep going because I don't see anyone, and again, my ghost sense hasn't gone off. Besides, I'm Danny Phantom. I have ecto-blasts that I can shoot from my hands, my mouth, my eyes and this one time, my backside. I can defend myself no sweat, although…the Guys in White…have become a lot more…formidable?

With that thought in mind, I pick up my pace until I can see the Fenton Works sign. Eventually my paranoia gets the better of me and I start to run to my porch. It's at that precise moment that my ghost sense decides to go off. I stop and whirl around, only to find a brown floating trench coat and fedora. Now, any other time, I'd probably be confused, but I had seen this ensemble before.

"_You again?" _I asked, recalling the first time I had seen…er…these floating articles of clothing.

The fedora nodded at me before he tossed something towards me. I almost missed it, but I somehow managed to catch it. Upon closer inspection, I realized that it looked like an upgraded version of the Plasmius Maximus, an invention of Vlad's that rendered my powers useless for three hours…it also worked on Vlad too.

"_What…how? What is this?"_

The ghost didn't answer me. Instead he disappeared. That was also how the first encounter went too. I looked over the item curiously before I started scanning the area. There was no point, I know, but it's not everyday when the Invisible Man comes up to you and gives you an upgraded piece of ghost hunting tech.

Speaking of ghost tech, I turned back around and headed inside of FentonWorks. I was tired, annoyed, hungry, and now confused. Upon my entering the house, I noticed Tuck and Dani staring at each other. The second thing I noticed was Dani in some of Jazz's hand-me-downs. The sight made me laugh. Dani and Tucker finally acknowledged my presence; Tucker smiling and Dani giving me her 'What Are You Laughing At Look'. I wave my hands defensively, unintentionally showing both her and Tucker what the invisible ghost had given me.

"_Dude, what's that?"_ asked Tucker as he put down the Time Staff.

"_I honestly don't know. Remember a few weeks ago when I told you about that invisible ghost in the brown fedora and coat?"_

"_Yeah,"_ responded Tucker in his skeptical voice, but I ignored him.

"_He just showed up not to long ago and gave this to me. It kinda looks like the Plasmius Maximus, but I'm gonna ask mom and dad to see what it does."_

I put the item down at the small table beside the couch and sit down making sure to be careful of Sam. Dani decides to sit on the floor against the cough. It's clear that she was officially annoyed. Tucker, on the other hand, had a grin on his face three miles wide.

"_Dude, you promised you'd tell me about the whole Sam and Paulina thing. I mean, I knew that it was going to happen one day, but I had always imagined that I'd be there to see it."_

I rubbed the back of my head before I looked down at Sam. I was hoping that she was fully asleep, otherwise I was probably going to regret telling Tucker this later.

"_The door to the Nasty Burger was locked. Sam knocked on the window. Paulina heard her, but didn't say anything cause…she was talking to me. Sam got angry, you know, typical Sam behavior. She punched through the glass, came inside the place, told Paulina off and well, Paulina got offended, tried to sucker punch Sam who then retaliated by giving Paulina a shiner."_

"_Dude, you make it sound so lame."_

I shook my head at Tucker before remembering that Tucker promised to tell me what he knew about my dad's weirdness.

"_Whatever, Tuck. What about my dad?"_

Tucker sort of fidgeted where he sat, but then out of nowhere Jazz popped up behind.

"_Dad's been in a funk, ya know, one of the ones brought on by Vlad? It's worse this time. He and mom are actually arguing. DANNY! You're covered in BLOOD!"_

"_Arguing?"_ I repeated, ignoring the obvious fact that I was indeed covered in blood.

Jazz just frowned at me, but then nodded her confirmation, though she eyed me wearily.

That was all it took for me to go upstairs to check on them. Despite me running on fumes, I had to make sure that everything was alright. I knew my dad felt guilty about Vlad, and even about me, but I wanted him to know that none of this was his fault. What happened to Vlad had been an accident, and to be perfectly honest it was Vlad's fault for having his face too close to the proto-portal.

With a shrug to myself, I prepare to knock on the door, only to stop when I hear my dad's voice.

"_Maddie, you know as well as I do that not everything Danny's said to us has been true. I know what half of our inventions can do to him. I know what some of them no doubt has done to him, and it's all because we…because I've been so blind and neglectful to my only son. It's amazing that he still calls me dad at all."_

"_Jack, I don't want to hear any of this. You know you mean the world to Danny. You know more than anyone else that Danny lied to us to protect us and himself. Jack, you can't place all the blame on yourself because not all of it is your fault. How could Danny becoming Danny Phantom be your fault? Were you the one who pushed him in the portal and turned it on?"_

"_No, but I was the idiot who put the 'On' button on the inside of the portal."_

"_Were you the one who pushed Vlad's face ridiculously close to the proto-portal?"_

"_No, but I did ignore you when you said the calculations weren't right, and I turned the portal on anyway."_

"_Jack…"_

"_No, Maddie, just admit it! Admit that I'm an idiot! Admit that you would have been better off with someone who's brain isn't a one celled organism. Admit that you would have been better of with someone like Vlad! Your mother and sister liked him better after all."_

The next thing I heard was what I am forever going to refer to as the smack heard round the world. Jazz had come running up the steps the same moment my mom had run out of her room for the lab. I immediately grabbed Jazz and turned us both invisible before I dragged her to my room and phased us both through the door.

"_Danny what the heck was that?"_ she asked, sounding slightly panicked. The first thing I wanted to do to Jazz was lie, but that part of my life was behind me.

"_I don't know, but I think it might have been mom slapping dad. He said something that may or may not have been called for."_

"_Danny,"_ Jazz said to me in her 'You Better Tell Me Now' tone of voice. I sighed before I took a deep breath.

"_They were having a heated argument, Jazz. I didn't even bother to try knocking. Dad was so upset and was adamant on getting mom to admit that he was a failure that he said something about along the lines of her probably being better off with Vlad."_

Jazz covered her mouth, barely hiding the shocked gasp that she made. I closed my eyes thinking that this whole ordeal could not have come at a worse time. I needed my family united to fight this threat that was no doubt lurking near the horizon. Mom was most likely too upset to work now, and dad…well, I don't know what to make of him at the moment. That just left me, Tucker, Sam, Jazz and Dani to do the work, that is unless the freaking Fedora ghost wants to help out.

With a shake of my head, I fall back on my bed and stare at the ceiling. It's hard to believe that I can literally see my family falling apart at the seems. Even when he's not here Vlad has the uncanny ability to make my life miserable. Why did we have to be stuck with that fruit loop? Couldn't, I don't know, Dash get stuck with the crazy rich guy, or someone from the GiW?

Jazz was pacing around my room, though it was clear that she was holding back with something. I try to sit up, but I just let out a groan. Now that I'm laying down on my nice soft bed, it's difficult to get back up considering I've been looking forward to sleeping all day, ever since I left school which seemed like years ago.

"_Jaazzzz,"_ I whined as I finally manage to force myself into a sitting position.

She turns to look at me, her expression indicating her worry. She was about to start panicking.

"_Jazz,"_ I said as she opened her mouth to speak. _"They're not gonna get a divorce over this, and I am completely fine. My body heals quickly thanks to my ghost half, remember? I'm just worn out so chill. Remember what happened last time?"_

Jazz nodded her head, but her lower lip and began playing in her hair. She wanted to vent, I knew she did, but I didn't have time to listen to her. I needed to get to dad.

"_Jazz, go talk to mom and make sure she's okay. I'll go and try to talk to dad; to make him understand that none of this is entirely his fault."_

"_Okay, little brother, but you might want to shower first otherwise dad might flip."_

I smile at Jazz before she walks over to me and rubs the top of my head. It was a good luck gesture, but seriously, I'm too old for that sort of stuff now.

"_Knock it off, and get going Jazz,"_ I say as I turn my head intangible causing Jazz to squeak then frown.

"_Fine," _she said as she walked out of my room with a huff while I forced myself out of bed.

As I forced myself to stand, I almost regret as I sway forward. I wait a few moments to make sure I don't topple over before grabbing a pair of boxers and my blue-grey pajama top with matching bottoms then I head for the door which Jazz had left open for me.

I walk towards the bathroom, hoping that my sister could calm my mom down that I had neglected to make sure my dad wouldn't be coming from the bedroom. It was only when I heard him shout, "Galloping Ghosts" did I realize I had been spotted, and unlike in the Nasty Burger, he actually took notice of the mixture of green and red blood. It wasn't that obvious when I was in Phantom form.

"_Danny, you're hurt," he said as he looked at me but not…at me._

"_No dad, I'm fine. Really. I'm was just about to take a shower and then come talk to you."_

"_You were?" he asked, obviously not believing a word I was saying._

"_Yes, I was." I argued back, my voice laced with annoyance. _

I knew I hadn't exactly been the good an honest son my parents wanted me to be, but I only did it to make sure that everyone would be alright. Sure I could have been hurt, but the only person in the Fenton household that I needed to be on the look out for was mom and her incredible aim and martial arts mastery.

"_Look, we can talk now if you want, but this gunk cakes up on my skin and makes me itch. Just throwing that out there."_

My dad lowered his head before he looked back at me and jerked his thumb towards my room. Apparently my dad wanted to talk now. With a huff I followed him to my bedroom where the bed looked soooo invited. Due to the obvious invitation for sleep, I sat in my computer chair while my dad took the bed. He looked at me expectantly while I tried not to yawn.

"_I heard from Tucker that you think you're a failure. Dad, you know that isn't true right?"_

"_It IS true, Danny. You don't have to lie to me anymore."_

"_Oh come on dad, enough is enough. I can name a bunch of stuff that proves you're not a failure."_

"_Oh yeah, go on then, Danny-boy."_

"_Alright, fine. That Ecto-Dejecto stuff. It may have done the opposite of what you wanted, but it came in handy. It was that stuff that stabilized Danielle."_

"_But it was still a failed experiment. Try again son."_

"_Alright, the Specter Speeder, on of the greatest inventions that's downstairs. It flies like a dream, the weapons fire nicely, and it was that invention that Sam and Tucker used to save me from Vlad."_

"_Your mother did the calculations."_

"_So you're not good at math, neither am I but look at what I've accomplished! Dad, do you know I'm going to graduate soon? If it weren't for all the extra tutoring I wouldn't be where I am now. It's the same with you. You have someone helping you accomplish your goals. You're the writer and mom's the spellchecker! Let's not forget my favorite moment! You beat Vlad back into the Ghost Zone when he tried to steal the Fenton Portal. Dad, that was all YOU, and you were incredible."_

Dad looked at me, uncertain of if I was being truthful or not.

"_How do I know you weren't there helping me?"_

"_Because I was handling the other ghost hunters, remember? By the time I got back to the lab, you were already handling everything, not to mention I started to clean the lab while you two were fighting. Remember? I changed the filtrater and you blew into the clogged one and sent all the ectoplasm into Vlad's face!"_

"…_You're right son, but that's just one thing."_

"_Are you serious? Dad come on, I named a bunch of stuff, and you're counting that as one? Alright, there was this one time when I tampered with the time stream in order to find a cure for Sam and Tucker…and Vlad. I sort of messed up the present by preventing Vlad from getting his ghost powers."_

"_You never told us that," his dad said, a look on his face reflecting a bit of guilt for whatever reason._

"_Yeah because I didn't want to see that look on your face, and I kinda didn't want another lecture about disrupting the nature flow of time and blah blah blah. The point is, when I messed up the present, I created some very unwanted side effects. You with the ghost powers that should have been Vlad's, my nonexistence, and mom married to Vlad."_

My dad's expression saddened considerably, and I knew why. It was the argument that he had with mom that he didn't know I had been listening in to.

"_After hearing that alternate story which consisted of you getting your powers, trying to use them for good only to fail because you debuted on Halloween, and how you ended up living her, you chased me around until I reached the lab. That's when I found out Vlad was married to mom. There was a newspaper clipping hung up on the wall, and well…I ended up telling you what happened and you chased me out of the house."_

"_Danny, where is-"_

"_Let me finish, dad."_

My dad hesitated before he nodded. I could see that he wasn't understanding what it was that I was trying to do or say, but I had to say this. I had to be completely honest with him, and if that meant telling him the more…awkward and painful details of this story, then so be it.

"_It only took me a second to realize where it was that I needed to be. I had to make my way to Wisconsin, and that was going to be a really long journey unless I was lucky enough to run into a natural portal into the Ghost Zone where I could easily make the trip, but I had no such luck. I flew all the way to Wisconsin, turned human and rang the doorbell. When the door opened, mom and Vlad were standing side by side. Vlad looked annoyed with the intrusion and said something about no cheese samples, but I had been so tired that I passed out at the steps._

_The next thing I remember was being sat down at a table so that I could eat something to get my strength back up. It seemed that this time around Vlad was the descendant of the Dairy King, and so what was laid out in front of me was different cheeses and some milk. Mom asked me where my parents were and I told her that there had been an accident. She and Vlad took pity on me, and let me sleep in one of the guest rooms."_

I rubbed the back of my neck. I was leaving out a very crucial part of information i.e. the kiss between mom and Vlad, eww to the max might I add, but it was for the best.

"_When I figured that everyone was sleep, I decided to look around in ghost mode. Despite the none ghostly appearance of the place and Vlad's hatred for ghosts, I knew that mom wouldn't give up studying and hunting ghosts. There was no way that she would. Eventually my search lead me to their basement, but they didn't have a lab, or so I thought until I dove through the basement floor. I had been right. There was ghost hunting equipment everyone complete with a ghost portal! I was so happy that I dropped my guard and instantly regretted it. The moment I exclaimed that I had found it was the same moment that mom knocked me out cold."_

"_She knocked you out?"_ my dad asked and I smiled and nodded.

"_Remember, I didn't exist in that world, so she had no idea that I was half ghost or her son. I tried to explain my case to her, telling her that I was her son. She didn't believe me, but that's when you showed up and gave her my wallet which I had unintentionally left with you. It had a picture of you, me, mom and Jazz. It was then that you believed me and you let me free. I gotta admit that the one thing I was glad about was having scientist for parents. Alternate timeline equals valid excuse. Anyway, mom had said that she had always loved you but Vlad had told her that you blamed her for you having ghost powers which was totally untrue. He had lied to her, and it was clear that she was unhappy with him."_

My dad smiled a bit as my own grew wider.

"_Mom opened the portal with me so that I could get back here to this timeline, but I was attacked by Vlad. That was when you helped me, and again you saved me not to mention mom."_

"_What happened next?"_

"_I went back in time to when I had meddled and figured out what I needed to know in order to save Sam, Tucker and Vlad, then I came back here. I couldn't have done that without you dad."_

"_But you wouldn't have had to if-"_

"_Dad, we all make mistakes, and sometimes their for the best. I wouldn't change having ghost powers or you as my parent for anything in the world. I love you dad, and right now, I really need you and mom to get it together. We have two very powerful ghosts in our midst and I could really use the support."_

Without warning, my dad stood from the bed and yanked me in one of his bear hug. I held my breath, not wanting to let on that I wasn't exactly at one hundred percent, otherwise it would really ruin the moment and my dad's guilt would no doubt kick in.

"_Dad, you're getting blood…over your jumpsuit…"_

"_Oh, right! You had been on your way to the shower."_

My dad let me go and I gave a sigh of relief before watching my dad walk towards the door. Suddenly his face fell.

"_I said some things to your mother…she'd never forgive me…"_

"_Did she forgive you for forgetting her birthday?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Did she forgive you for forgetting her anniversary?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Did she forgive you for all the times you went over the top and shot ecto-goo everywhere?"_

"_YES!"_

I smiled as I watched my dad's expression lighten considerably before he bounced happily out of the room. Before he got too far though, I recalled the invention that I had brought in.

"_Hey dad! There's something on the table downstairs that I really need you and mom to take a look at. It might really come in handy!"_

"_Will do son!"_

I shook my head and chuckled at my dad's enthusiasm. It was clear that he was feeling much better which was more than I could say for myself.

"_Better go shower before I give in to my need for sleep."_

With that, I made my way to the bathroom with my clothes in hand, ready to take a nice relaxing shower.

TBC


End file.
